State of Delusion
by bririzzle
Summary: One of the patients of Sunny Mountain Mental Hospital in Forks, Washington is found dead during a particularly brutal storm. The weather has them all trapped inside so it's up to the resident nurse, Rosalie Hale, to uncover the killer.
1. Red Skittles

**a/n:** This idea came from a conversation I had with sidekick55. And in gratitude, this is where I plug her ff's, Canon and Grace Note. They rock. No, really, they do. And if you haven't read them already, you really, truly should.

My muse, sidekick55, is also my beta. So you should thank her. In fact, thank her by reading Canon and Grace Note. And if you don't like this at all, then don't blame her. She's still brilliant and it's not her fault. Blame me. And then go and read her ff, because your life will be better for it. Maybe I'm biased. Probably I am. But once you've seen the brilliance of her original characters, well...just trust me...even though you don't know me...'kay?

Plug over.

**

* * *

**

**Chapter 1 – Red Skittles**

Rosalie appraised her reflection in the mirror through a rainbow scribbling of marker. She turned her head slightly to the left to avoid a particularly large purple smudge and ran a pink fingernail across the bottom of her full lips, making sure her lipstick was in place.

It was Monday, the beginning of what would undoubtedly be a very long week. Not that long weeks were unusual at Sunny Mountain Mental Hospital. In fact, a short week at Sunny Mountain was about as ridiculous a thought as the _name_ SunnyMountain. The hospital was located in Forks, Washington, a small town in the Pacific Northwest that was continuously assaulted by rain and clouds, making for an incredibly dreary atmosphere outside Sunny Mountain and a considerably creepy atmosphere within.

Pleased with her appearance, Rosalie shook her wavy golden hair and headed out of the bathroom door down the pale green corridors to the nurses station, where an unfamiliar face was waiting for her. She took a moment to appraise the timid, mousey girl before moving behind the counter.

"Can I help you?" Rosalie's disinterested voice ricocheted down the quiet corridor.

"Hi. I'm Angela, the new nurse." Her voice was barely above a whisper.

"Right, right. Dr. Whitlock told me to expect you. Well, you can't work in that." Rosalie gestured to Angela's outfit that was about as non-descript as the girl. "I'll take you to the locker rooms and get you some scrubs and then give you a rundown of the patients." She moved from behind the counter and led Angela down the hallway.

Rosalie could tell from Angela's timid nature that she wouldn't last longer than a month, so she didn't concern herself with small talk. The turnover at Sunny Mountain was high, most nurses not lasting any longer than two months. Rosalie had been there for just over a year, longer than most of the staff.

Upon entering the locker room, Angela and Rosalie were greeted by broad, bare shoulders and a well muscled back. Emmett, the orderly, turned around to greet them. His dimples gave his face a youthful charm, but the gleam in his eyes revealed an impish nature.

"Rose," he said simply. It was only her name, but the tone of his voice sent a shiver down Rosalie's spine and a blush in Angela's cheeks.

"Don't," Rose said.

"Don't what?" And again, though his facial expression implied innocence, he was clearly flirting.

"Don't call me Rose."

"Alice gets to call you Rose." He mock pouted, referring to his sister, her best friend.

"Yes, but see, I _like_ Alice."

Emmett's laugh filled the small locker room as he pulled on his shirt, not phased by Rosalie's snobbery. In fact, Emmett enjoyed it. It was too much fun to toy with her. He knew very well that she liked him.

Rosalie found Emmett overbearingly attractive. She would never admit, however, how _much_ she liked him. How much she liked the game they played. How much those dimples made her weak at the knees every time he smiled at her. And he always had a smile for Rose.

But she was engaged. If she hadn't been, and if her sister, Bella, didn't depend on her…

But she was, and Bella did.

"So, who do we have here?" Emmett turned his attention to Angela who had moved to stand almost completely behind Rosalie.

"This is Angela, the new nurse. Angela, this is Emmett. He's an orderly."

He took two steps over to Angela and enveloped her in a hug. Personal space wasn't a concept Emmett was familiar with.

"Welcome to Sunny Mountain," he said as he let her go, her feet plopping lightly back to the laminate floors.

As if on cue, somewhere down the hall, a shrill scream broke up the welcome party.

"Guess that's me. I'll catch you later Angela." He winked at her, sending another flourish of red to her cheeks. "Rosalie." They locked eyes as he walked out the door. He flashed the crooked, dimpled smile he knew she liked best.

Regaining her composure, Rosalie moved towards her locker. "Emmett's harmless…mostly. So are the other orderlies, Eric and Mike. Word of advice though, if any of them ask you to help them find something in the storage closet, tell them to find it themselves." Rosalie pulled an old pair of blue scrubs and handed them to Angela. "When you're done, meet me back at the nurse's station."

She left Angela alone to change and went to grab the patient charts. As she sat waiting, Alice walked down the hallway rolling a large basket behind her filled with paint, construction paper, and other craft supplies. Alice was a volunteer activity coordinator at Sunny Mountain.

"Hey Rose!" Alice greeted with a smile. Her short dark hair was in disarray around her head and her calico patchwork dress was dotted with bits of paint and plaster.

Alice and Emmett were alike in many ways, from their crystal blue eyes to their congenial personalities. Where they differed however, was in stature: where Emmett looked like one of Zeus' love children, Alice looked like she had flown directly off of Peter Pan's shoulder.

Following absently behind Alice was Dr. Jasper Whitlock, his head lost in a textbook. Most of the staff was overworked and underpaid, but none more so than the Doctor himself. He was frequently too preoccupied to notice things going on around him, and as such, hadn't noticed that Alice paused at the nurse's station to talk to Rosalie.

Luckily, Alice's Tinkerbelle-like stature managed to save her from getting smashed in the head by the oversized textbook as Dr. Whitlock stumbled into her. The book thumped loudly to the floor, resulting in another blood curdling scream from one of the patients down the hall.

"Oh, Alice. So sorry," Dr. Whitlock apologized, bending over to pick the book back up. He had lived in Forks for the last five years, but had managed to retain a touch of his Texan drawl. "Are you alright?"

Alice beamed up adoringly at him. "Of course, Doctor."

It was no secret that one of the primary reasons Alice maintained her volunteer job at Sunny Mountain was her long-standing crush on Dr. Whitlock. As obvious as it was to the staff, and even some of the patients, Dr. Whitlock hadn't a clue.

Without looking back, he carried on down the hall, his nose back in the book with Alice staring longingly at his retreating figure.

Rosalie sighed. "When are you going to ask him out?"

Alice turned back around to face Rosalie, still radiant from the interaction. "I'm working up to it."

"You've been working up to it for the past six months. Seriously. You're obviously going to have to make the first move. You just need to come in here one day, in you best outfit, and by best outfit I mean one not splattered with paint or clay, and drag him into the storage closet with you."

"That's more your style than mine, Rose. Don't worry, I'm just waiting for the right moment. I'll know when it's time."

"Alright, well keep the storage closet in mind if you find that waiting for the right moment is taking too long. Trust me when I say that there's never a _wrong _moment for the storage closet."

"You have been spending entirely too much time with my brother." Alice retorted. "Speaking of closets and places people belong - how's the fiancé?"

Rosalie shrugged, indifferent. "Royce is fine."

It was Alice's turn to sigh. "Are you really going to go through with it?"

Alice knew very well that Rose didn't love Royce and was only marrying him for his money. But she also knew that without him, Rose would have no way to care for Bella. As far as Alice was concerned, his only redeeming factor was that he paid for Bella's stay at Sunny Mountain.

Royce always came across moderately agreeable, but being a car salesman, there was a slimy undertone that Alice didn't trust. She figured he knew Rose didn't love him either, and that he was okay with it so long as he got a trophy wife. To Royce, appearances were everything, and there was no woman, dead or alive, more beautiful than Rose.

Before she could answer the uncomfortable question, Angela appeared at the station. Rosalie managed to suppress a sigh of relief and made the introductions. "Alice, this is Angela. Alice is our volunteer activity coordinator."

"Nice to meet you." Alice smiled and shook Angela's hand. "Well, I better get set up. I'll talk to you later." Alice looked at Rose pointedly, letting her know that she wouldn't forget that her question went unanswered.

Rose grabbed an armful of patient charts from the desk. "Well, let's get you introduced."

By now the orderlies had moved most of the patients into the common room, so she decided to start there. It was the size of a large ballroom with windows overlooking the cloud covered mountains - was beautiful, but not particularly cheery.

The walls here also had the same rainbow scribbled treatment as the mirrors in the bathroom, though just last week it had been bright yellow sunflower wallpaper. They were still trying to find a painter willing to come in. The last one had been scared off when Carlisle, one of the patients who believed he was a doctor, tried to get him into a straight jacket and admit him into the hospital.

As Rose approached she sighed and rolled her eyes; the common room was sheer pandemonium.

Emmett was trying to wrestle a pair of scissors away from Lauren Mallory without hurting her. She had already sheared off half of her light blonde hair and most of it lay on the floor surrounding her chair where a patient had taken to braiding the fallen pieces.

Jessica Stanley, another patient, had her lips puckered, eyes closed, and arms wrapped in a vice hold around Mike's neck, ready to lay one on him. Each of his arms gripped her shoulders, pushing her as far away as possible.

And then there was Eric chasing Billy Black. Mr. Black believed himself to be an Indian Chief, and at this moment, was racing around the room in his wheel chair yelling and clapping his hand on his mouth over and over.

As he sped by Angela, whose jaw had just about dropped to the floor and looked as if she was ready to sprint for the exit, Eric came running by and slid to a stop in front of them.

Breathing heavily, he smiled appreciatively at Angela. "Who's the new girl?"

"Why don't you worry about that later, Yorkie?" Rose glared. "You have an Indian Chief to catch before he takes someone out."

Rose put her fingers to her mouth and whistled loudly. Immediately, all attention was on her.

Lauren's grip on the scissors loosened and Emmett was able to pry them away; Jessica dropped her hands and glared at Rosalie, having been stopped in, what was to her, a "heated make-out session" with Mike; and Billy, recognizing a power of authority matching his own, put the breaks on. Unfortunately, Eric didn't notice Billy's hand moving to stop the chair, and he crashed into him, flipping over the front and onto his back with a grimace of pain.

"Alright people, just because you're crazy doesn't mean you get to act like lunatics. Let's show Angela just how civilized you can be, okay?"

Angela was surprised by Rose's frankness in addressing the patients as crazy. Most nurses she had come across showed a little more sensitivity. However, there was no malice or resentment in Rose's tone; it was just a statement of fact that almost bordered on a term of endearment.

As much as Rose had become family to them, they had also become an extended, if not quirky, family to her. She knew the patients nearly as well as Dr. Whitlock, and had a strong sense of where their boundaries lay. Crazy as the patients may have been, they knew who they could and could not take advantage of.

Carlisle walked over to Rose's side, clutching a My Little Pony coloring book much like she was holding the patient charts.

"Nurse Rose is quite right," he announced to the room, and then turned to Rose and Angela, "Would you like to introduce me to the new nurse before we make our rounds?"

Rose had a soft spot for the mock doctor and frequently let him join her. Mostly, he stood back and observed, occasionally tearing a page out of a magazine or coloring book, prescribing skittles to patients.

"Certainly Dr. Cullen. I'd like you to meet Angela. Angela, this is Doctor Carlisle Cullen." She turned to Angela, whispering into her ear. "Carlisle doesn't realize he's not a doctor, but he doesn't get in the way."

So the two nurses and mock doctor made their way around the room, Rose making introductions to the patients and Angela muttering a quiet hello.

After they had completed the circuit in the common room, they moved on to the private rooms down the hallway where the more reclusive patients stayed. Esme Platt, a patient with a particularly severe case of OCD, refused to leave her room. Considering the state of the common room, Rose could hardly blame her.

After knocking on the door, in what appeared to Angela to be a completely random pattern, Rose opened and shut it four times before entering. This was the only way that Esme allowed guests in her room.

"Well, good morning, Esme." Rosalie walked into the room four steps and stopped.

Esme was sitting on the edge of a chair, back perfectly straight. To Angela, she looked like a diagram straight out of Emily Post. Rose knew that it was just part of her morning routine.

"Rosalie, Carlisle. So nice to see you both," Esme greeted. "Please, do come in. Who is your friend?"

Rosalie took a moment before answering. "Esme, this is Angela, our new nurse. This is her first day here with us."

"It's a pleasure to meet you." Angela smiled, unsure how someone so pleasant had become a patient at Sunny Mountain.

Unfortunately, she had spoke in an uneven number of syllables and was about to find out.

Esme's eyes grew wide, her pale skin turning a chalky white before flushing a dark crimson red as she held her breath. Simultaneously, she began to hum a bar of Stars and Stripes Forever.

Rose took two steps back towards Angela, whispering low enough to where Esme couldn't hear. "You have to speak an even number of syllables. Say it again, but add another syllable somewhere."

As she spoke to Angela, Esme's face had turned from red to plum and her hand was gripping a section of her caramel colored hair. Carlisle stood to the side, scribbling swiftly with his fuchsia crayon over a prancing pony.

"I'm sorry. It's a great pleasure to meet you, Esme." Angela corrected herself, taking her time to count the syllables out in her head.

Esme instantly calmed, and her face began to return to a normal shade. "Not to worry." She said with a forced smile after completing a final bar of Stars and Stripes Forever.

Carlisle took that moment to hand over a prescription to Esme. He was the only person in the hospital, patient, staff or otherwise, she would accept things from directly. They had forged some inexplicable bond in their brief moments together.

Rose knew Esme kept every prescription he'd ever given her in a small box next to her bed. She also knew that each time, he prescribed her the same thing. Red skittles.

Rose had always been curious as to his reasoning behind it since she knew that the other patients received prescriptions for yellow, orange and occasionally purple skittles, but never red; however, she felt it might be a little too intrusive to ask.

"Thank you Carlisle. That's so kind of you." Esme smiled up at him, glowing with warmth, and grabbed the torn piece of paper from him letting her fingers mingle with his for just a fraction of a second.

"We'll be leaving. Thank you for having us." Rose smiled and ushered Carlisle and Angela out of the room.

"I'm so sorry," Angela gushed as soon as the door was closed.

"No, it's not your fault. I should have warned you before hand. Just remember to do everything evenly in the future and you should be okay. I think for now though, you better let me or the orderlies attend to her."

***

Rose felt she had grossly over-estimated Angela's lasting a month after her reaction with Esme, so she let her take a brief break before continuing their rounds. Carlisle had gone off to supervise activity time with Alice.

In the common room, the boys were gathered in front of the TV watching sports recaps on ESPN. Rose stood in the doorway quietly for a moment, listening to them talk. They were making bets on how long Angela would last.

"I think she'll make it through the day and be a no show tomorrow," Mike said.

"I hope she makes it a little longer than that. It's nice having some fresh meat around here." Rose couldn't see Eric's face, but she knew that he was most likely wagging his eyebrows or making some other crude expression.

Emmett and Mike both laughed, and Rose interrupted before giving Emmett a chance to make his bet.

"Don't you boys have something you should be doing other than watching SportsCenter and making bets?"

The three turned around, but only Mike and Eric had the decency to look guilty. Emmett stood there smiling at Rose as the other two scurried out of the room to go look after the patients.

"Aw, come on Rose. You know she's not going to last the week as well as I do," Emmett said, moving towards the door.

"Whether she does or not is neither here nor there." Rose stood with her hands on her hips. "And I told you not to call me that."

"You're cute when you're angry." Emmett said.

"Is it really necessary for you to push my buttons?"

He shrugged, smiling. "I like getting you all riled up. It's like teasing an irritable grizzly just after hibernation – dangerous, but exhilarating. Plus, when you get mad, you pout your lips in the cutest way. It's not my fault you make it so enjoyable for me."

Rose was getting more annoyed by the moment and was having difficulty _not_ pursing her lips. "Oh, I'll show you enjoyable," she vowed, her voice purring over the words. She spun on her heel and began to move out of the room.

"You're right," Emmett called after her chuckling. "That view _is _enjoyable."

Rose paused mid-stride and spun back around. She stomped towards Emmett until they were nearly toe-to-toe. "Do not. Objectify me. Emmett McCarty." She said as her finger jabbed at his hard chest.

In that moment, the mixture of Rose's proximity and the fire in her eyes changed Emmett's mocking smile to something else entirely. He looked down at the infuriated Rose who, against her will, was pouting her lips.

"There it is," he murmured, and with his index finger he gently traced the bottom lip, just as she had done that morning in the mirror, but with far more tenderness and passion.

Rose, who had already been breathing heavily from anger, breathed deeply inward, unsure of what to do. She knew what she wanted, but she also knew that she _shouldn't_ want it.

Emmett's eyes were hooded as he moved one hand to cup her jaw and another to brush the golden locks away from her face. His breath began to match hers, and he could feel her pulse racing to match his.

Just as Rose turned her face up towards his and their noses brushed, someone cleared their throat in the hallway.

Startled, Rose pushed at Emmett's chest, breaking whatever spell had been cast over the pair only seconds before. She turned around to meet Alice's "_I told you so" _face and a surprised Angela.

Emmett's hands had dropped back down to his sides, but his eyes sparked with impending victory.

Rose moved swiftly out of the room, brushing past Alice with a look that said, "_don't say a word_."

"Angela, are you ready?" Rose called.

Angela spun around, confused as to what she had just witnessed and hurried after Rose who had already made it halfway down the hall.

"Well aren't you just the cat standing over the spilled milk." Alice smiled, walking up to Emmett.

He shrugged and threw an arm over his sister's shoulders. "A gentleman never tells." He grinned with an impish gleam.

"You are anything _but _a gentleman." Alice laughed, but then got serious. "Listen, Emmett. I don't care that you're my brother. Rosalie is my best friend, and she's got a lot to deal with in her life already. If you hurt her, I _will _make your life hell."

If anyone knew how to make his life miserable, it would be Alice. And so, with just as serious a tone, he said, "I just want to make her happy."

* * *

End a/n: Leave me some red skittles like Elliott leaves E.T. Reese's Pieces.


	2. The Very Thought of You

**a/n:** No, don't worry, I have nothing to plug this time…just some thanks to those of you who took a chance on reading this and left me delicious red skittles. Strangely, a review high is not unlike a sugar high. It does, however, have the benefit of not sending me into a coma. And in gratitude, I've left red skittles for you in the form of an audible playlist so you don't have to guess at what random song I've chosen for the chapters.

Read on my friends. And thank sidekick55 for the beta'ing as she's lovely, and there would be a lot more unnecessary italicization if she left me to my own devices. Not to mention improper comma placement *gasp*.

Oh, and I suppose it's a little cliff like at the end of this one. You've been warned.

* * *

**Ch – 2 The Very Thought of You**

Rose had been away at the University of Seattle when she got news that her parents were killed in a car crash.

Unfortunately, their father's meager income as the Police Chief of Forks hadn't left much behind after funeral expenses and Rose, fresh out of college, had yet to find a job. She hadn't been back in Forks for more than a week before Royce began to make his move, establishing himself as a knight in shining armor.

To the outside observer it was all very sweet: a high school romance reignited by tragedy. It certainly sounded like a happy ending. To Alice, however, who was a little more perceptive than the average person, it was a skillful game played by a self-involved, appearance-driven snake.

Rose was neatly under his thumb just the way he had planned. Not only did he pay for Bella's care, but also Rosalie's life. Nothing was in her name anymore. Not the car she drove. Not the house they lived in. Not even the bank accounts.

Her self-respect had taken quite a beating when she had come to the realization that she didn't love Royce. But it was too late, she was trapped.

It was with that weight on her shoulders she led Angela down the hall to the final patient's room: Bella's.

Before they entered, Rose reviewed her chart. "Bella has dissociative personality disorder. So far, Dr. Whitlock has only been able to nail down one other personality. Obviously there's Bella, my sister. But there's also her alter-ego, Edward. Neither of them is particularly dangerous, although Edward does think he's a vampire…a _vegetarian_ vampire no less. He says that he doesn't eat humans, only animals." she shook her head. "How Bella came up with that one, I'll never guess, but there it is."

"When was she diagnosed?" Angela asked.

"She's been here for about a year and a half, give or take. Though our parents suspected something was wrong when she was 17. Oh…and I should warn you. _Edward_ thinks he can read minds. He can't of course, but sometimes he gets lucky."

Through the window in the door, Rose could see Bella looking out over the mountains. Sometimes she could tell from her posture _who_ she would be walking in on, but today it was a mystery.

Taking a deep breath, she opened the door and walked in. "Good morning."

Bella turned around and smiled. "Hey, Rose."

Rose let out a sigh of relief, recognizing Bella's tone of voice. "How are you this morning?" she asked and went to hug her sister.

"Crazy as ever." Bella blushed.

Rose turned to Angela who was hovering just past the doorway. "Bella, this is Angela, our new nurse."

Bella awkwardly reached out her hand to shake Angela's. "Nice to meet you," she said, and pushed a lock of brown hair behind her ear.

Angela, still wary after her encounter with Esme, shook her hand but didn't say anything.

"So, no Edward today?" Rose had gotten used to asking about _Edward_ as if he were an actual person rather than another facet of Bella's ego. She spent a little time with him, and aside from him being a tad melodramatic, Rose could think of worse personalities Bella could be sharing her headspace with.

"No," Bella replied somberly.

On very rare and _very _creepy occasions, Bella and Edward would interact. In fact, that was when Rose first realized Bella needed help; she had walked into Bella's room and found her sitting on her bed, having what appeared to be a full on conversation with herself. To make matters worse, Bella was always visibly happier when they "talked".

Rose smiled sympathetically and rubbed her back. "Well, it's just about lunch time. Do you want to join us, or would you rather stay here?"

"I'll come with you," Bella said.

The girls walked into the common room where Emmett and Mike were setting the patients up at tables before the food arrived. When Emmett spotted Bella with Rose and Angela, he made a beeline for them.

"Hey, little sister!" He grinned, and enveloped Bella in a hug. Emmett had known Bella all her life, and considered her family.

"Hey, Emmett." She smiled.

"Come to eat lunch with the crazies today, huh?" Emmett winked.

Bella laughed lightly and took an empty seat next to Carlisle.

Angela left to help the cook, Laurent, distribute trays of food. This meant that Rose and Emmett were now standing alone together. Again, both of their minds on exactly the same thought as they looked into each other's eyes.

"For the love of all that's holy, Emmett, would you please control your imagination?" The voice came from Bella, but was in a startlingly different tone.

_Edward_ had decided to come for lunch.

"I truly do not want to see Rosalie in that light," Bella-turned-Edward continued.

Emmett's mouth curled up into a smile. "He's good." Emmett winked at Rose, tapping his temple indicating Edward's mind reading abilities.

Emmett continued with his eyes still on Rose. "Sorry, I can't help myself." Then he turned to Edward. "So, I'm guessing that unless Laurent has decided to serve up some mountain lion, you're probably not hungry?"

Edward looked at Emmett and rolled his eyes. "No. Thank you." He looked at the tray Angela had placed in front of him. "I think I can do without macaroni and cheese with…what is that?" He poked at the squishy hot dog chunks with a spork. "Cut up hot dogs?" Edward's face filled with disgust at the "human" food.

Bella and Edward shared the same body, but they did _not _share the same facial expressions. Bella tended to look serene and at ease; although, that could have been a result of the multiple pills she was required to take. Edward on the other hand, looked like he was walking around trying to pinch a marble between his butt cheeks while contemplating the national debt.

"Edward, you should eat something. Bella hasn't eaten since last night and she needs her strength," Rose reasoned.

"I doubt even Bella would eat this." But with a sigh, he took a bite. Rose and Emmett both had to hold back laughter as the look on his face began to resemble a baby preparing to spew.

"This is worse than eating squirrels, filthy vermin." Edward continued to grumble as he ate.

Billy decided to send his hot dog chunks rolling on the floor in order to properly honor them with a "hunt," so Emmett left Rose with the agitated _Edward._ As Billy held his spork in the air like a javelin, ready to strike, Dr. Whitlock walked into the room. In passing, he accidently crushed one of the wild "dog_s_".

Billy's eyes grew wide and his mouth pulled down in anger. Emmett sensing an imminent attack, grabbed the back of his wheel chair. Dr. Whitlock continued on absently, only looking down in curiosity at the feeling of something squish under his shoe.

He pulled Rose into the far corner of the room and began speaking quietly. "I just got off the phone with Washington State Mental Hospital in Tacoma. We're about to get a patient transfer. He's somewhat high security, and he should be arriving tomorrow."

"What makes him high security?" Rose asked.

"You don't want to know." A dark look passed over his face. "I already spoke with Emmett and informed him that he'll be the primary orderly handling him. I do not want you or any of the other nurses to go into his room without Emmett."

"Alright. But if he's such a threat, why are they sending him here? Aren't they better equipped to handle patients like that?"

"They've had to send multiple patients out to other care facilities because they're so full. Puyallup had to take on three high security patients, and James Witherdale is the best of the worst. We're lucky we didn't end up with any of _them_." Dr. Whitlock shook his head and smiled apologetically before leaving the room.

As Rose walked Edward back to Bella's room, her mind was pre-occupied with all of the potentially awful things their new patient had done. She tried not to focus on the truly heinous crimes, but she couldn't help being a little afraid for Bella's safety.

Rose changed out of her scrubs into a denim pencil skirt and cream sweater at the end of her shift, and then went to see if Bella had come around. When she found that _Edward_ was reading quietly, still not replaced by her sister, she decided to head out.

She nearly made it to her car when Alice came skipping up next to her. "I think we should go do happy hour at The Lodge," she proclaimed.

"And I think I have work tomorrow."

"So do I, Ms. Anti-Social. Come on. Please? I have a feeling Dr. Whitlock might be there tonight." Alice looked up at Rose with her best puppy dog expression.

Rose sighed. When Alice made plans to do something, she was ruthless. "Fine, but I'm not staying out all night. And I'll drive myself."

"Excellent. I'll meet you there in fifteen." Alice skipped off to her car.

Rose climbed into her Mercedes and called Royce on his cell phone to leave a voice mail, saying she would be home no later than ten.

The drive into town was particularly beautiful that evening. The fog had yet to make an appearance, and the warm glow of the setting sun cast spotlights through the trees on the road ahead. Rose could see large, menacing clouds on the horizon above the Indian Reservation and knew that the nice weather wouldn't last.

The Lodge was the nicest restaurant in the area, but hardly more than a glorified diner with a bar and a makeshift dance floor. On weeknights they had good drink and appetizer specials that drew in the locals.

Rose spotted Alice's car parked out in back of the restaurant so she went inside to find her. After passing the hostess, she felt an increasingly familiar, mixture of annoyance and excitement. In the booth, sitting across from Alice, was Emmett. Rose couldn't help but get the feeling that she had been set up.

Fortunately, Alice had also invited Angela, Mike and Eric. _Unfortunately_, she had strategically placed them in between Emmett and herself, meaning that the only vacant seat was next to her brother since she had claimed the opposite end of the booth. Rose continued on, shooting daggers at Alice with her eyes. Alice, having noticed Rose's entrance, smiled innocently with an air of victory hovering around her. No doubt pleased with her master planning.

"Rose, you made it!" she exclaimed.

Gauging the look on Emmett's face, she hadn't told him either.

Rose sat next to Emmett, taking care not to sit too close. He was by no means a small man, and he took up a good portion of the space, leaving only a small gap between her body and his. A small gap that she was all too aware of.

_This isn't at all awkward, _Rose thought.

Mike and Eric were focused on Angela, who looked like a deer in headlights. They were trying to pry her life story from her, one inane question at a time.

"Did you move here with your boyfriend?" Eric asked.

Angela blushed and shook her head with a tiny smile. Rose would have sworn that no one could rival Bella in shyness, but Angela brought a whole new meaning to "socially awkward." It was almost too painful to watch.

"So, Alice," Rose began an attempt to save Angela from having to answer another round of questions. She felt a wave of electrifying tingles circulate through her body as Emmett turned slightly towards her, their knees brushing against each other under the table.

Rose, who was more composed than most, momentarily lost her train of thought as her heart did a little river dance in her chest. Regaining her composure, she continued. "What made you think Dr. Whitlock was coming here tonight of all nights, when he's never come to happy hour at The Lodge before?"

"Because I asked him," Alice stated matter-of-factly, as if Rose should have guessed.

"Right on!" Eric cheered, giving Alice a high-five. "It's about time the good doc got laid!"

The table groaned in unison, and Alice smacked him on the back of the head.

"Dude," Emmett said. "Don't talk about my sister like that."

Rose rolled her eyes and slid out of the booth. "Alice, Angela and I are going to have a sidebar. While we're gone, try not to set evolution even further back. You've nearly hit caveman status, Yorkie. "

Rose led the girls over to the jukebox and began flipping through the outdated music. The owner, Ben Cheney, had just purchased the restaurant from the original owners a few months back and hadn't had time to update the records. While most of the townies complained about the random mix of jazz and classic rock, Rose appreciated the quirky variety.

"First of all," Rose began as she popped a quarter into the jukebox. "Why in the hell is Emmett here, Alice?"

"I don't know what you're trying to insinuate." Alice said, though she knew very _well_ what Rose was insinuating. "I couldn't very well tell him he _couldn't_ come. I invited all the staff. I wasn't going to _not _invite Emmett just because you don't like him. He would feel left out."

Rose turned around to face Alice. "You know it's not that I don't like him, Alice."

"Really? You certainly could have fooled me." Alice was having trouble not smiling now. "How _do_ you feel about him?"

Angela, smarter than Rose had given her credit for, knew where this conversation was going and interrupted. "So are you and Dr. Whitlock…together?" she asked.

Rose shot her a look of gratitude. She had picked probably the only subject that could distract Alice from garnering the information she wanted.

"Oh, no. Well, not yet anyways." Alice replied.

Rose explained. "Alice has had a crush on Dr. Whitlock since she first set eyes on him, and has been working up to asking him out for the last six months."

"I told you I was waiting for the right time."

"Really? And what made you decide that today was the _right time_?" Rose asked.

She shrugged her shoulders. "I don't decide these things. I just know them. And speaking of the right time…" Alice's attention was focused on the entrance where Dr. Whitlock had just walked in. "Sidebar over," she declared, and bounced away to greet him.

Rose and Angela headed back to the table. "Nice to see you out in the real world Dr. Whitlock," Rose said.

"Please call me Jasper. And thanks. I needed a break."

Alice didn't waste a second. As soon as the niceties were out of the way, she dove straight into monopolizing Jasper's attention. Mike and Eric dragged Angela to the dance floor before she even sat down, forcing her to dance between them to Journey. For the third time that day, Rose and Emmett were left together, as good as alone, as the party had broken off into an awkward triple date. Rose wondered at the strange forces that were bringing this sequence of events about.

"So…" Emmett turned his body towards Rose and placed his arm on top of the booth behind her head. His smile was a large as the Cheshire cat, and he would have looked equally mischievous if it weren't for those mind-numbingly adorable dimples.

It was difficult keeping her sense about her with this sort of proximity. In her mind she was shoving him back against the end of the booth, straddling him in a way that was incredibly inappropriate for the public. In reality she sat still, carefully regulating her breath in attempts to control her pulse.

"So…?" she prompted.

As Emmett seemed to be considering what he was about to say, her thoughts became a complicated mixture of: concern over what topic Emmett was so hesitant to broach, her delusional fantasy induced by out of control hormones, and berating herself because she was a taken woman.

"About this morning…" He hesitated again, testing the water.

Rose arched an eyebrow casually, but her body tensed. Their almost-kiss was very fresh on her mind. "What about it?"

"I want to say I'm sorry – "

"Good," Rose interrupted, on the offense.

"….but I'm not."

Her breath caught in her throat. Rose was tired; tired from work, tired from holding back her feelings, but most of all, tired of lying to herself. There was enough weighing against her, what with her marrying Royce for financial stability rather than love.

"I'm nearly married, Emmett," she said quietly, her emotional wall crumbling around her. The words burned her heart and literally hurt to say, but by being honest, she felt she at least had some self-respect.

"I know. But you don't have to be…"

"I can't. I just…I can't do this. It's too much." Rose looked imploringly into his eyes. "There's just too much Emmett, too much to lose. I have to take care of Bella. She's all I have, and I'm all she has."

Silence filled the space between them for a long moment before Emmett spoke again. "She's not all you have," he said with more sincerity than Rose knew any one person was capable of.

Such a simple statement. And it nearly broke Rose completely.

Mike and Eric had chosen that moment to drag Angela back to the table, interrupting the now palpable silence between Rose and Emmett. Alice and Jasper were too deep in conversation to notice and Rose, looking for an excuse to break away, stood up to let them in.

"Rose?" Angela asked. "Would you come with me to get a drink?"

Rose was grateful for Angela's perceptive nature and agreed.

"That's twice tonight you've saved me. Thanks," Rose said once they were at the bar.

Angela smiled. "You saved me from Mike and Eric. I figured I owed you one."

"The idiot twins can be a lot to handle," Rose admitted, laughing stiffly. "They don't know how close they've come to finding themselves locked in a padded cell in straight jackets."

Angela and Rose were smiling when Ben came up to take their drink order. Rose was used to all attention being on her, so she noticed it when Ben smiled goofily at Angela, ignoring her completely.

"What can I get for you?" he asked, looking directly at Angela.

"Rose?" Angela asked.

"Actually, I think I'm going to head home," Rose said. She had the feeling that Angela would be able to handle herself for the rest of the night.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. I'll see you tomorrow, right?"

"Of course," Angela responded, surprised that it was even a question.

"Have a nice night." Rose gave Angela a brief hug, pleased that there may be hope for Angela yet.

As she gathered her things from the now empty booth, Billie Holiday played. It was Rose's favorite song, "The Very Thought of You." She knew without looking that Emmett would be standing by the juke box, watching her back as she left, and as much as she wanted to turn around, she left The Lodge without saying goodbye.

The tree-lined street back to her house was quiet, most people settling in for the night. It was barely past 8pm, nearly two hours before she told Royce she was going to be home. Rose pulled into the driveway behind his car, noticing that the lights in the house were on, but dimmed, and although it was muffled, she could hear music.

As she walked through the front door into the living room, she gasped and dropped her purse. The contents spilled out onto the floor.

* * *

**End a/n:** Play my favorite song on the juke box.


	3. Drag Queens and Slumber Parties

**a/n:** Sorry it took longer than expected to bust this chapter out. As I'm sure you can relate, I get a little….excited….to get to the Emro parts, so this chapter originally had a whole other direction that I wasn't prepared for…and frankly…neither was Emro.

Thanks: MM for being a sounding board. Nae for finding me that delicious youtube video. It may not come into use for this chapter now, but I will definitely be reviewing it over and over and over and…yeah…um…sidekick55 for the use of the quote "Sleep is for humans." She owns it. And me. And she's an awesome beta'er.

So, here it is. Ready for Skittle Sunday, and your fic-reading pleasure.

* * *

**Ch 3 – Drag Queens and Slumber Parties**

Rose was in her Mercedes now, taking the sharp twists and turns of the mountain recklessly fast. She couldn't shake the image of Victoria's tacky pink leopard print lingerie as she straddle Royce.

Rose's phone lit up in the car seat next to her. "Royce King." She gripped the steering wheel tighter, turning her knuckles white.

On the radio, Foreigner came on, making her roll her eyes. It was so cliché that a cheesy 80's love ballad would come on at a time like this. It seemed that was the only time the universe sent them to you, when you least wanted them.

Even as she groaned, she found herself mouthing the lyrics and nodding her head to the rhythm. If nothing else, it kept her from falling asleep. She was afraid to fall asleep: afraid of what she would see, burned onto the back of her eyelids.

Rose took another sharp turn as if just around the next bend something might come along that would erase her memory. The image kept playing over and over: a flurry of fiery red curls bouncing up and down as Victoria gyrated on top of Royce; the contents of Rose's purse spilling out onto the tile; that god-_awful_ lingerie; the look of surprise, quickly replaced by annoyance on his face; and finally the slam of the door as Rose ran out of his house to her car.

She turned off the radio. The music was not helping to clear her head.

She wasn't crying. It hardly surprised Rose that he was cheating on her, but she figured he would have at least had the decency to do it in a cheap motel. Victoria looked like the kind of girl that would get off on that. Instead she was getting off on Rose's new sofa.

Rose had been driving aimlessly for the past hour, but the further she drove, the more exhausted she became. She was emotionally drained and knew she had to find a place to sleep soon or just pull over onto the side of the road.

Alice wouldn't be home, and even if she was, she probably wouldn't be there alone. After watching Alice pine over Jasper for the past six months, Rose couldn't bring herself to interrupt them; not to mention the fact that Alice shared a house with Emmett. The only place Rose could go was the hospital.

Moments later, Rose turned into the gravel driveway, parked in her usual space, and killed the engine. Before she opened the door to get out, she took several deep breaths and glanced around the parking lot. She recognized Kate's car and decided to go through the back entrance. The last thing she wanted right now was pity.

Her cell phone rang again as she swiped her pass at the employee entrance. It was Alice this time. Royce must have called Alice after he couldn't get a hold of her.

_That was ballsy_, Rose thought.

She moved the phone to her ear, but had a second thought and sent Alice to voice mail. Alice would want to know everything in detail, which was more than Rose's stomach could tolerate. And Alice would have no problems marching straight over to Royce's house to give him a piece of her mind. Rose had had enough drama for one night. As she walked down the corridor, she turned off the phone and dropped it into her purse.

The hospital was quiet: the patients asleep for the night, and aside from Rose's heels clicking lightly in the hall, she could only hear the murmur of a TV coming from the direction of the nurse's station.

Rose peered in through Bella's door. The light was off but the moon cast a shimmering glow over the bed, revealing her sleeping figure.

She tiptoed over and began rubbing Bella's back to wake her.

"Rose? What time is it? What are you doing here?" Bella batted her eyes.

"It's just after ten. Do you mind if I stay with you tonight?" Rose asked. When they were younger they had often shared a bed when one or the other was having a bad day.

Bella slid over, allowing room for Rose to get in. "What's wrong?"

Rose let her head rest on Bella's shoulder. "I walked in on Royce and Victoria screwing on my sofa," she said, cringing at the memory.

Bella wrapped her arms around Rose in an awkward hug. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah. I think my pride's more wounded than anything. And that sofa was brand new."

Bella held back a laugh. "I'm sorry. But at least you know now – before you got married to him."

"I guess so." Rose sighed. "I just don't know if it makes a difference."

"Wait, what do you mean? Of course it makes a difference, Rose."

"Bella, I have nothing. If I leave him, I can't support the both of us."

"Would you stop worrying about me?" Bella demanded.

"You're my little sister - my only family. Worrying about you is my job."

"Worrying about me is _not_ your job." Bella sat up in bed, displacing Rose's head. "I'm an adult - crazy, maybe, but still not your responsibility. If you can't afford to pay for my care here, I'm sure there are other, less expensive places I can go."

"What? Like a state hospital? I don't think so. I can't let you go somewhere like that. Those places are filled with criminals and the scary kind of crazy people."

"Crazy is crazy, Rose." But Bella looked off into the far corner of the room wrapped in a contemplative silence.

"Listen," Bella said. "We both know that it's been over with Royce for awhile. You don't even love him. I think it's time you focused on what makes _you_ happy. We can figure everything else out as it comes."

That wasn't a solution Rose could accept. Even being trapped with Royce, she had a sense of control. As long as she played the role of dutiful fiancé, everything was taken care of.

"I don't know, Bella." Rose turned away from and stared out the window.

"Look at me," Bella demanded.

Rose didn't move. She didn't think she had ever been more tired in her life and wanted nothing more than to sleep.

"Look at me, Rose!" she demanded again, this time shaking her shoulder.

With a groan, Rose turned her head, staring up into her eyes.

"You may be blonde, but you are _not _dumb. Stop being an idiot and look at this situation for what it is."

"Which is?" Rose asked.

"It's a wake up call and a way out wrapped up in a bow."

Rose groaned. "Actually, it was wrapped in a fluorescent pink leopard print one piece."

"What?" Bella asked, confused.

"Victoria. She was wearing this pink leopard print teddy. You should have seen it…Actually, on second thought, its better that you didn't. No one else should have to carry that image around with them. I didn't know you could get lingerie that tacky outside of San Francisco. She looked like Bozo the Drag Queen."

"That must have been some homecoming," Bella chuckled.

"That's an understatement." Rose fake gagged and tried to force the mental image out of her mind.

"All joking aside, it really will be okay, you know." Bella said and patted Rose's shoulder.

"Yeah, I know," Rose replied, but she wasn't sure she believed it. She was too tired now. Once the sunlight broke through the window, reality would be there waiting to present her with a multitude of hard decisions to make. In the dark, it was easy to pretend it wasn't there, but Rose was officially tired of pretending.

"I'm tired. I just can't think about this anymore tonight." Rose sighed.

"You should probably get some sleep anyways," Bella said. "Tomorrow we can sort it all out together."

Rose nodded her head and drifted off to sleep.

"Rise and shine!" Alice flicked on the light in Bella's room. Only two hours had passed since Rose had closed her eyes.

"Alice, it's the middle of the night," Rose complained while shielding the light from her eyes.

"Well, obviously." Alice walked into the room with large canvas bags in both hands. "Royce called me to find out where you were, so of course I assumed he did something despicable. So here I am with the makings for a slumber party of epic proportions."

Rose frowned. "Alice, we both have to work tomorrow. I am in no mood for girl time. I just want to sleep."

Bella, who had been sitting quietly next to Rose, spoke in a lower octave and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Really, Alice. It's late and Rosalie has had an exhausting night. You should let her rest."

"Sleep is for humans, and hello to you too, Edward," Alice said as she spread out a comforter onto the tile floors. "Listen, you wouldn't understand, you not being a girl and all, but this is the best cure for cheating fiancés. Ice cream." Alice pulled out a pint of Ben & Jerry's out of a bag, "chocolate," she continued, "and of course…facials, because without facials, you can't call it a sleepover."

Edward rolled his eyes, but let her continue pulling several more items out of her bags.

Once she was finished, Rose and Edward still hadn't moved. "Well, what are you waiting for? Get down here!"

Rose, who had woken up a bit more since Alice had barged in, realized she hadn't told anyone but Bella about what she had walked in on back at Royce's house. "Alice? How did you know Royce was cheating?"

"Wasn't he?" Alice asked.

"Well…yes…but how did you know?"

Alice shrugged. "The power's of deduction my dear. You're clearly not bruised or otherwise physically injured, so I just assumed. Alright, what do you want to do first? Should we talk about what assholes all men are…sorry Edward…"

"I'm in agreement where that cad, Royce, is concerned," Edward said, dismissing her apology.

"Alright then," Alice continued. "We can also do manicures, pedicures, or facials. Heck, we could do mani-pedi's, facials, _and_ talk about what dicks guys are at the same time!"

"I do not want a mani _or_ a pedi." Edward griped. "And I feel quite certain that Bella would not allow you to subject her to this, either."

"Yes she would," Alice said with conviction. "And you know it. Bella used to let Rose and I play beauty shop with her all the time."

Edward was not giving up. "I don't see how getting my nails done is going to make Rose feel any better."

"Of course you don't. It's because you're a man." Alice giggled. "Rose. Wouldn't seeing Edward with nice cuticles make you feel better?"

Rose knew Bella would disapprove of this torture to her alter-ego. But Edward's facial expressions were far too amusing to pass up. The nail polish would make for another amusing surprise once Bella returned, and Rose could use a laugh.

"It really would." Rose looked at him while batting her eyelashes and slightly tilting her chin with pouty lips. Edward was far too much of a gentleman to refuse.

"If my bra ends up in a freezer…" Edward began, but was drown out when Rose and Alice erupted into a fit of giggles.

The trio kept the boy bashing to a minimum considering the company, but Alice followed through on the mani-pedis and facials.

Alice mostly dished about the rest of her date with Jasper, which apparently there wasn't much of after Rose left.

"Once I got the phone call from Royce," Alice explained, "Jasper, Emmett and I split up to find you. Once I saw your car here, I called them to end the search party. Speaking of which, next time you reject my phone call, I'm calling the National Guard."

"So no goodnight kiss?" Rose asked.

"Nope. It's okay though." Alice's eyes sparkled. "Our date went well tonight, all things considered. I think he's definitely into me. There may be a storage closet in our future."

Alice had painted Edwards nails with a daring shade of purple, Rose in red, and Alice in a shockingly vibrant shade of blue when she brought the conversation to a more serious level.

"So, Rose, what are you going to do?" Alice asked, looking her in the eyes.

Rose had been thinking about it all night but still wasn't any closer to making a decision than she had been when she arrived at the hospital. "I don't know, Alice." She sighed.

"Bella and Rose already had this conversation," Edward explained. "Bella told her that she needs to start considering herself and stop worrying about everyone else."

"Bella's right." Alice turned to Rose. "Okay. Let's break this down. What's holding you back from making yourself happy and ending this ridiculous charade of a relationship with a man that you never loved?"

"Well, when you put it like that…" Rose started.

Rose looked to Edward. He was looking back at her, with Bella's chocolate brown eyes, pale porcelain skin and dark hair. Even if Bella wasn't there…even if it was Edward, she still felt like she was betraying her sister somehow.

Edward, understanding, answered for her. "Rose is concerned about Bella. Where she'll stay if Rose can't afford to keep her here."

" '_When'_, Edward. Not 'if' ," Rose corrected.

"Well, that's silly." Alice said. "It's one thing to be loyal to your family, but it's another thing to be so self-sacrificing that it's to your detriment. Don't you think it hurts Bella to see you so unhappy?"

"It makes Bella incredibly unhappy." Edward admitted. "You don't know how many times I've had to talk her out of taking matters into her own hands. There's nothing she wants more in the world than to see you happy."

"Listen, Rose. If I thought you really loved Royce…" Alice stopped, taking a moment to think about what she was saying. "No…not even then, actually. He's still a gross and pathetic excuse for a man. But what I'm trying to say is, aside from taking care of Bella's bills, there's no reason for you to stay with him. He has nothing to offer you except for a life that looks picture perfect on the outside, but more like a jail cell from within."

Rose never ceased to be surprised at how much Alice understood her without Rose ever having to say anything.

Alice continued. "If you break it off with Royce, you can come and stay with me and Emmett. You can continue working here, and I can take you to and from work. And then you can still afford to keep Bella here. And if you can't afford it, I'm sure I can help."

"No, Alice. That's too much." Rose stopped her from talking. "I can't keep letting people take care of me. It's not fair to you _or_ Emmett."

"Please. Like Emmett would care." Alice rolled her eyes. "And it's not like you would be there forever: just until you can get on your feet – however long that takes. And at least with me there's no strings attached. And out of it, not only will you be free and happier, but so will Bella."

Alice let her proposition hang in the air for a moment before continuing. "Just think about it, okay?"

The girls…and Edward…decided to call it a night shortly after that. Edward took the floor, insisting Alice and Rose share the bed. In the dark, Rose let Alice's offer sink in. It was certainly something worth considering.

Before a year ago, Rose would have had too much pride to let her friends help her like this, but her time with Royce had slowly stripped that pride away, one layer at a time. Of all the decisions Rose had laid out in front of her, she could see that this might be the best option for Bella. And more than that, it would be the best option for _her_.


	4. Weapon of Mass Seduction

**a/n:** For all those wondering when I'm getting to the central plot – the murder mystery – I'm working up to it, I promise! We should see some development in the next chapter.

* * *

**Ch 4 – Weapons of Mass Seduction**

Alice spent most of the morning trying to convince Rose to move in. She kept rambling on about all the things they could do together, making Rose feel like she was about to pledge a sorority.

"We can have a house warming party for you to welcome you to our home! And we can go shopping next weekend to get all the decorations for it. It's going to be so much fun! Just like when we were kids. Remember? How we used to talk about living together?"

"That's _if_ I move in at all."

"Oh, come on. You're moving in. You know it." Alice persisted, sure of herself.

"You haven't even talked to Emmett yet. What if he says no? What if he doesn't want another housemate?" Rose raised an eyebrow.

Alice merely scoffed. "I've got a pretty good idea of what Emmett would say."

"What I would say about what?" Emmett asked as he walked into the locker room.

"To Rose moving into our guestroom," Alice replied.

His face lit up minutely before an expression of deep concern took over. "Wait, what happened last night? Are you moving out of Royce's house? What did he do to you?" Emmett moved to Rose and grabbed her chin. He tilted her head from side to side looking for bruises or any other marks.

"I'm fine, Emmett." Rose slapped his hand away.

"What did he do?" he repeated the question.

"He didn't hurt me. I just happened to interrupt him screwing his secretary."

Emmett went completely still. Though he was huge, Rose had never actually been frightened of him before, but as his cheeks lost their ever present dimples and his eyes hardened with anger, she found herself taking a step back.

Alice and Rose watched Emmett take deep breaths in and out, letting him harness whatever anger was coursing through him.

"First," Emmett said, breaking the silence. "First, we'll go to the house and get your things. Then you'll move into the guest room. And then, once you're safe at home, I'm going to go back and…" He couldn't complete the sentence. His fists balled at his sides sending gruesome scenes of blood and bruises flashing through Rose's head.

"I'm going to go back and teach that asshole a lesson in how to treat women." Emmett's dimples reappeared with a slightly terrifying smile.

"I don't think that's a good idea," Rose hedged.

"Why not?" His eyes were sparkling with excitement now.

It wasn't that she had any particularly fuzzy feelings toward Royce at the moment, and she wasn't exactly concerned for Emmett's physical well-being; she knew he could handle himself. What concerned her were Royce's political ties. He was a big donor to the police station and had friends in very high places. If Emmett so much as looked at Royce wrong, he stood a good chance of losing his job... at the very least.

"Listen. Just calm down, okay?" Rose took a step toward Emmett slowly. "It just…it's not a good idea."

"But it would be so much _fun_. The douchebag's been asking for it for a long time now, and I've only held back out of respect for you. But now that you aren't with him…"

"Why is it that boys think fighting is so much fun?" Rose asked rhetorically, rolling her eyes. "Emmett, Royce may not be able to hurt you, but he can bury you alive in legal allegations. Do _not_ get on his bad side, okay?"

Emmett shrugged. He had managed to suppress his anger, but now Rose was getting angry. He just didn't seem to understand, or didn't want to.

She shoved him with her hand, but he didn't budge. "Emmett. Do _not _be an idiot. Please…For me?"

Emmett sighed in disappointment. Those were the magic words. "Fine. For you."

He pulled Rose into a hug, lifting her almost completely off the floor. "I'm sorry. He never deserved you anyway."

"Listen kids," Alice interrupted. "I need to go get the macaroni station set up. Rose, when you two are done hugging it out, we're planning a house warming party." Alice danced out of the room, smiling deviously.

Now that Rose was moving in, she and Alice worked through their breaks trying to figure out how to get her things from Royce without causing a scene. Emmett and Jasper had already agreed to provide backup in case Royce decided to cause trouble, though Rose was less concerned about him and more about Emmett. Rose could see through his happy facade and was concerned that he might decide that Royce needed to learn a lesson: a very violent, very painful lesson.

The day went by much too quickly for Rose's liking, which always seemed to be the case when there was an unwelcome task to attend to. She would be happy to get the task over with, but at the same time, she dreaded having to do it.

Today, Rose's schedule was filled with two unwelcome chores: one during work hours, and a second for later. James Witherdale, the high security psych patient and the first of her unwelcome tasks, arrived while Rose, Angela, Emmett, Jasper and Alice were standing at the nurse's station. Emmett, Eric and Mike went to the receiving dock to bring him in while Rose made sure that Bella was safe in her room. She didn't want her anywhere near his line of sight.

As Emmett rolled him down the hallway with Eric and Mike on either side, James' attention roved over each of the patients and staff. He looked absolutely average at first glance, as he sat quietly bound to his wheel chair and wrapped in a straight jacket. When he passed the nurses station, James' eyes locked on Rose first, but then quickly moved to Alice.

He smiled, but it was all wrong. There was happiness there as his grey eyes lit up, and an astute clarity that sent a chill through Rose's bones. Usually the worst psych patients were the more intelligent ones, and with that single glance, she knew he was absolutely lethal. Rose was immediately glad that Jasper hadn't told her what he had done; she had a feeling she wouldn't be able to work near him if she knew.

Just before he turned the corner to his new room, he turned back to look at the girls who were standing huddled together. "Hello, Clarice," he said, and winked at them before laughing maniacally down the rest of the hallway.

Hours later, Rose was driving her beloved red Mercedes for the final time, moving onto the second of her unwelcome tasks. The car would be the hardest thing she had to give up. She caressed the leather steering wheel softly, shedding a single tear.

"Did you know Jasper was a child prodigy?" Alice was in the passenger seat, giving Rose a Jasper trivia lesson in hopes of distracting her. "He graduated from college when he was 18. I always wondered how old he was because, you know, he doesn't look all that old. Not old enough to be a doctor anyway. Can you imagine how smart our kids will be? We could have a whole little family of prodigies. "

Rose could see Jasper in Emmett's jeep from her rearview mirror. She wondered if he knew his whole life was about to be planned out for him. "Don't you think that you're putting the cart before the horse?" Rose asked. "You aren't even officially a couple."

Alice shrugged. "It's only a matter of time. He's a Taurus too, which is very compatible with Pisces. And, he can play the guitar. I love a man who is talented in more than one field . . . " Alice continued to ramble and Rose continued to feign interest.

They pulled up to the house. Royce's car was out front. She had hoped by some miracle, he wouldn't be there. That would have made things too easy though, and at present her life was not about being easy.

Rose took a deep breath and looked over at Alice. "It'll be okay," Alice said and patted Rose's hand.

When they got out of the car, Emmett and Jasper had already walked over. Jasper smiled comfortingly at Rose, but it was Emmett's presence behind her that got her to take the first step.

Royce heard Rose's car and came out to stand on their little porch. He was watching with an indefinable expression.

Rose turned back to the group. "Wait out here, okay?"

"No way." Emmett refused. "You aren't going in there alone."

"Yes. I am," Rose replied with a hard stare. "I need to handle this on my own."

"No. You don't." Emmett said sternly. "That's why all of us are here. I'm walking you to the door, but then I'll stay out on the porch. And I want you to leave the door open when you go in there."

Rose sighed. Though she didn't think she was in any physical danger, she felt better knowing that Emmett was there to support her. "Fine."

"I've been so worried about you, Rose," Royce said as she made her way up the steps.

"I'm sure. I must have just missed all your phone calls today, right?" she replied. "Listen, you know what you did. You know it was wrong, and you know there's nothing to talk about. So I'm just going to go inside, get my things and then we'll all be gone. I'll leave the keys to the house and the Mercedes on the kitchen counter."

Royce looked slightly perplexed. This was not what he had been expecting. He had prepared himself for her to yell and scream. He wasn't prepared for her to be so cool and collected.

"Emmett, I'll be right back." Rose strode confidently into the house.

Royce turned to follow but Emmett stopped him, positioning his body in front of the entry.

"This is _my_ house," Royce said with narrowed eyes. "Get out of my way."

"No. You won't be stepping one foot in there until after Rose comes out with all of her things."

Royce tensed and looked for a way around Emmett, but there was none.

"I just want to know one thing." Emmett was smiling, but there was nothing friendly about it. "Was it worth it? Was Victoria really worth losing Rose?"

Royce chuckled and leaned casually against the railing. "What makes you think I've lost anything? Sure, it looks like she's leaving now, but she'll be back."

Emmett's body was rigid and his face lost its mocking edge. He moved away from the door. "You're lucky, you know. That Rose is here and that she _doesn't_ want you harmed. If she did, I would happily bludgeon your head in with my bare fists." Emmett hovered over Royce, enjoying the way his sheer size made Royce cringe away.

Royce had nowhere to look but up, severely killing the effect of the menacing look he was trying to return. "Try it, meathead. You may be able to beat the shit out of me, but if you touch just one hair on my head, I'll have the cops here in a second to haul you off to jail."

"It would be worth it." Emmett's mocking smile returned and the earnestness of his words blanketed the air around them, causing Royce to take a step back. "You never deserved Rose. And you know what, while I would give anything . . . _anything_…for Rose to not have seen you with that whore of yours, I kind of have to thank you."

"For what? You don't have a chance with her," Royce sneered. "Yeah, I've seen the way you look at her. But you'll never have her. You see, a girl like that…like Rose…takes a lot of upkeep, a lot of money - money that you sure as hell don't have. Rose _will _be back. Once she realizes how much it costs to keep Bella at Sunny Mountain and once she realizes how much it costs to maintain the lifestyle that she's become accustomed to, she'll come crawling back to me on her _knees_."

"You don't know anything about her, do you?" Emmett's laugh was filled with disdain. "You have no concept of how strong she is. How strong she's become. The girl you knew in high school, _she_ would have come crawling back. But after everything that's happened to her, everything she's been through in dealing with the death of her parents and taking responsibility for Bella…" Emmett shook his head at Royce's pathetic delusion of control.

"Oh, I know I'll have to atone for my _mistake_," Royce replied, placing air quotes around the word mistake. "I'll send her some flowers. Maybe I'll even apologize."

"You know, I used to envy you for what you had with Rose. But now – now I feel nothing but…pity."

Rose's voice came from behind Emmett. "Excuse me."

Royce changed his expression from derision to forced sorrow. "Please, Rose. Don't go. We can talk about this and we'll work it out."

Rose handed her suitcase to Emmett and slowly turned around. Her face was a cold mask of indifference. "What? What could you possibly have to say that would change my mind? Are you going to tell me it wasn't what I thought it was? That I didn't see you fucking that skank on my sofa? That it didn't mean anything to you? Because none of that makes a difference to me.

"You and I have been over for a long time, and I was just too afraid to break it off, and you played on that. You took advantage of my situation and used it to keep me here. Truthfully, I don't give a fuck that you screwed Victoria. You two are made for each other: both pathetic excuses for human beings. What _kills_ me is that I let you manipulate me for so long. And you know what? I can't even be mad at you for that either. Because I let you do it. But now it's over. So for once in your life act like a man and deal with it."

Rose turned on her heel and climbed into the jeep. Alice and Jasper both tried, and failed, to hold back enormous grins at their friend's verbal victory, and Emmett smiled back at Royce with satisfaction.

As they drove off down the street, Royce's stunned silhouette faded into the background.

"Well, I think that went well," Alice said with a grin.

By the time they had dropped Jasper off and headed back home, the threatening clouds from the night before had made good on their promise. Saying it was raining cats and dogs would have been a colossal understatement. Each drop stung as it crashed down from the sky onto Rose's skin. They were only in the rain for about 30 seconds, but it had been enough to soak them through.

Alice disappeared to get towels while Emmett helped Rose to the guest bedroom with her bags.

"Welcome home, roomie!" he said.

"Thanks." Rose smiled lightly and began digging through her luggage to find dry clothes. Unfortunately, the canvas had done nothing to protect her wardrobe from the rain.

Emmett realized this and offered to get her something of his to wear since anything of Alice's would be too small. He came back into the room with a t-shirt that would probably look like a dress on her, but she thanked him and went to the bathroom to change.

Rose stood in front of the mirror looking at her reflection, and felt like a large weight had been lifted from her shoulders. She tried to see ahead into what the future had in store for her, but at that moment she couldn't see further than the next hour, and that only involved sleep.

Emmett didn't realize it, but Rose had heard his entire conversation with Royce. Of course, listening to Royce talk about her in such condescending terms was difficult, but hardly a surprise. Emmett, on the other hand, had completely taken her off guard.

The conviction and sincerity of his belief in Rose had nearly brought tears to her eyes. It also shed a new light on her understanding of their relationship. Rose had always imagined that the attraction was strictly physical. At least that's what she had tried to convince herself. Deep down, she knew her feelings for Emmett were more complicated, but had never imagined that his might be too. And with this knowledge, everything about being around him had intensified tenfold.

Rose bent her head down to the sleeve of Emmett's shirt and breathed in its scent with a sigh. As relieved as she was to be living there, it certainly presented a whole new set of problems. As if working together wasn't complicated enough, he was Alice's brother, and now she lived with both of them. Getting into _any_ sort of relationship with him could have drastic consequences, and Alice was too good a friend to lose.

"Rose?" Alice's voice came from the other side of the bathroom door.

Rose pulled out of her introspective state and opened the door to find a freshly clothed Alice on the other side.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

"Yeah. Just thinking."

"I'm really proud of you, you know." Alice hugged her around the shoulders.

"Thanks. I'm proud of myself too."

"Are you taking the bathroom hostage already?" Emmett stood in the door way with a grin lighting up his face. "Because I'm telling you right now, I _will _come in here, lock or no lock, clothed or unclothed, if you take too long."

"Shut up, Emmett." Alice laughed. "We're just having a little girl talk."

"Can we move the girl talk to the hall then? I'd like to take a shower." Emmett briefly glanced at Rose, making her stomach tremble and her eyes flutter at the thought of a wet Emmett…a naked Emmett… all within just a few feet from where she stood. She could already tell living here was going to be harder than she ever imagined.

"We're leaving!" Alice grabbed Rose by the hand and pulled her out. "No one wants to see you strip down. Well at least I don't. Rose?" Alice looked back at her playfully.

"What? Oh, no. No, no one wants to see that. Gross," Rose replied.

Emmett's laughter filled the house even after the door was closed.

"So. Are you hungry? I can make dinner," Alice offered. "Or actually, I can microwave dinner. I think Emmett's got a couple of Hungry Man dinners in the freezer we can heat up for you. There may be some Spaghetti-o's in the cupboard too. Sorry. We haven't been grocery shopping yet."

"No, it's okay. I think I just want to go to bed."

"Yeah, you've had a long day. You can ride into work with Emmett tomorrow. I have something to do in town, so I'll be in a little late." Alice's expression told Rose that she had some sort of secret plan, but Rose was too exhausted to pry it out of her.

As tired as she was, Rose found it difficult to sleep that night. For one, she wasn't used to sleeping alone. That was going to take some getting used to. And then there was the fact that her body was taut with lust as she could hear the shower just beyond her door. Her active imagination certainly wasn't helping things either.

When she did finally fall asleep, her dreams were of Emmett.

The alarm went off on the nightstand next to her, waking Rose up. She looked over at the clock, and with a groan, pulled herself out of bed. It was nearly time to go to work, and she didn't want to make Emmett late.

Rose stumbled into the kitchen, the smell of coffee wrapping its delicious scent around her with the promise of much needed caffeine. Alice's purse was gone from the table where she had dropped it last night, so Rose figured she had already left on her mystery mission.

The coffee had just finished percolating and Rose reached into the cupboard above it to grab a cup. She began to pour when a large arm came over her shoulder, placing a second cup in front of her. Startled, she nearly dropped the carafe, but Emmett's other hand reached out to steady it, effectively trapping her in between his arms.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to scare you," he said, his voice still husky from sleep.

His one hand was on the outside of hers, gripping the coffee pot, his other palm down on the counter beside her waist.

"It's okay," Rose managed to reply, but her heart still hadn't slowed down and showed no intent of doing so.

Rose set the pot back on the counter and turned to hand him the cup she had already poured. Emmett dropped his arms but he was still standing quite close behind her; close and nearly naked, wearing just his boxer-briefs.

She let out a soft gasp, taking all of him in. He had clearly just woken up. There were indentations on his face from a pillow and his eyes were heavily hooded with sleep. Rose was so used to seeing Emmett vibrantly awake that she had never given any consideration to how he might be in the morning. She liked this languid version of Emmett.

She pushed the cup toward him, trying to keep her eyes from roving any lower than his immense shoulders, and turned back toward the counter to get herself some coffee before her body decided act on impulse. She was dangerously close to recreating one of the scenes from last night's dreams.

Rose could still feel Emmett standing behind her as she poured. He was tired, but not too tired to notice how beautiful Rose was. Even in the morning. Even without makeup. Even in his t-shirt… especially in his t-shirt.

"Did you sleep well last night?" Emmett asked, taking a sip of his coffee.

Not only was it early, but Emmett's proximity was also severely affecting her grasp of the English language. "Mmhmm," was her witty and intelligent reply.

Rose turned back around and leaned against the counter. Again, making an attempt to focus her eyes on anything but his bare chest, his well muscled stomach, or God forbid, anything lower than that. She chose her coffee cup this time. Her hands were planning a mutiny against her more civilized thoughts and she had to grip the cup with both hands so they didn't make their traitorous intentions known.

"You?" Rose forced out, still not looking anywhere near Emmett.

"A little…restless…but okay I guess." The coffee had started to warm up his sleepy vocal chords, but his tone was still below its normal register and sent a wave through Rose's body with each syllable.

They stood in silence, both fighting their hormones off with everything they had. Rose was immensely glad that Alice had already left for the morning. No one needed to be here to witness this awkward encounter.

"I took my shower last night, so you're welcome to me…" Emmett paused and his ears turned slightly pink "…to it…I mean. You're welcome to _it _this morning."

"Hm? Oh, yeah. I'll just…go do that now then." Rose stood there confused for a moment, realizing that she should leave the cup in the kitchen, but that would release her hands from their pseudo prison. Her fingertips twitched in anticipation. "I'll just um…take this with me." Rose raised the mug, and then darted around him to the bathroom.

The cold shower hadn't helped anything, it only made her cold, and as she stepped out to look for a towel, all she could find was a washcloth hanging on a rack next to the sink. Rose hopped around on the balls of her feet, dripping wet and freezing cold. The linen closet was down the hallway, right across from Emmett's room…of course.

She only had three options. One: she could attempt to run out and grab the towel herself, but there was no guarantee Emmett wouldn't be out there. Two: she could have him bring her a towel – her body seemed to like the possibilities of that idea very much. Three: she could make due with the washcloth and attempt to air dry. The last seemed like the best idea, but she didn't have a lot of time.

"Emmett?" Rose called, peeking her face through a tiny crack in the door.

Silence.

"Emmett?" she called a little louder, opening the door to allow her head to peak out. Her blond hair hung down and dripped onto the wood floors.

More silence. The house wasn't all that big. She had no idea what on earth he could be doing.

She decided to try once more. If he didn't answer, at least he probably wasn't in the house and she could safely make it down the hall to grab a towel herself.

"Emmett!" she yelled.

Rose waited a few moments – still no answer. She peeked further out turning to look in both directions to see if the hall was clear, and then darted to the linen closet.

She held one hand behind her, attempting to cover her bottom as she tried to pull open the linen closet. And of course, because nothing in Rose's life was easy at the moment, it was jammed shut. She pulled on it with one hand, using all her weight. It budged a fraction of an inch. She moved her other hand to push against the wall while the pulling the handle. With one final tug, the linen closet flew open, sending Rose crashing into Emmett's door.

After Rose had gone to take a shower, Emmett went to his room to get ready. He had just thrown on a pair of pants when the rain started to pound on the roof again. When Rose called for him, he was searching through the back of his closet for an umbrella. He usually just dashed out from the house to his jeep when it rained, but figured Rose might want it.

Hearing a crash, he pulled himself out of his closet and opened the door. There, sprawled in the nude, was Rose, just like a naughty FedEx delivery.

Rose tried, and failed, to get back up gracefully while covering herself with her hands. Emmett stood motionless in the doorway, stunned. After several hard blinks to make sure he wasn't seeing things, he leaned down and grasped Rose under her shoulders to pull her up.

"Don't you _dare_ laugh at me, and don't you _dare_ look," Rose demanded through her teeth. She was a little more than embarrassed and very aware of Emmett's large hands on her bare flesh.

Emmett tried to hide his smile, but it was too much like a bad porno. Not to mention how furious she looked and how her lips were starting to pout in the way he found so appealing.

Rose attempted to glare back at him, her lips pursed in annoyance. But just as her pout was working on him, his dimples were working on her.

Emmett moved past her after he set her on her feet and grabbed a towel out of the closet. He really would have preferred not to, but they both had to get to work, and if she stood there on display much longer, he wasn't ever going to let either of them leave his bedroom, much less the house.

He turned around to grant her privacy as she wrapped the towel around herself.

"Okay," Rose said, letting him know it was safe to turn back around. "Why didn't you answer me when I called? I called your name like three times."

"I'm sorry," he apologized, still smiling. He actually wasn't sorry at all. He would be replaying that scene in his head for years to come. "I was looking for something in my closet."

Rose nodded her head and then raised her arm to rub the back of her neck. Even as she did so, her eyes were focused on Emmett and his completely inappropriate smile.

"Are you okay?" Emmett took a step toward her to examine her neck. Rose stood very still, her hands gripping the towel tightly, both to keep it from falling and to keep from pulling herself up and wrapping her legs around him.

"Just a little sore I think," she responded.

Emmett gently brushed her damp hair away, carefully looking at her slender neck and shoulders for any sign of injury.

Rose chilled as his breath ghosted across her bare skin. Her body won its battle with her good sense in that moment and she leaned into Emmett's expansive chest.

His hands froze on her shoulders; they were about to have a mutiny of their own. Unfortunately for him, a man's good sense wasn't quite as easy to overcome, especially when the body was so used to following instinct.

Instinct was telling him to loosen her hands from the flimsy towel that stood as an unwelcome barrier between their bodies; to run his hands down her back; to pull her up close to him; to bring his mouth down to hers.

His sense was telling him to remove his hands from her shoulders and to go back into his room to finish getting ready and let her do the same.

He made a compromise between the two and gently let his hands slide from her shoulders down her arms and then back to his sides. He leaned down and gently placed his lips where her throat met her shoulder. Rose's breath hitched slightly, nearly sending the compromise out the window, but he moved around her, back into his room and closed the door.

Rose stood in the hallway for a moment, dazed. She blamed the dimples. Those things were weapons of mass seduction.

* * *

**End a/n: **I dedicate this chapter to the lovely MissMartyr. We were having a conversation about Kellan and his general hotness, and she mentioned that his dimples were weapons of mass seduction. And so it was with Kellan, so it is with Emmett. And so this chapter belongs to her.


	5. I Don't Know What to Call This Chapter

**a/n:** Sorry Skittles Sunday was changed to Skittles Someday. Anyhoo – So begins the mystery…kinda'… Thanks to the lovely SideKick55 for helping me keep my head and for doing a lovely job of beta'ing.

* * *

**Ch 5 – I Don't Know What to Call This Chapter**

Emmett expertly maneuvered down the nearly flooded streets. His laughter filled the jeep as he aimed the oversized tires directly at puddles, causing mud to spray up in sheets and coat the once silver jeep in varying shades of brown. Rose thought he was enjoying the ride to work far too much.

He may have looked carefree, but only half his mind was focused on the road. The other half was replaying the images from that morning. He didn't know why he was doing this to himself. It would be better to wait until later to think about Rose in his shirt, or to imagine her dripping wet in front of his door, or leaning up against him wrapped in a thin towel. Much, much later, and preferably when he was alone.

As they hit a puddle the size of Lake Michigan, Rose gripped tightly the sides of her seat tightly. She was both annoyed and grateful for the rain and road noise that made talking impossible. She preferred being shaken to death rather than having to sit in awkward silence after that morning.

Rose's attention was caught up in everything Emmett was doing: his laughter, the dimples engrained deeply into his cheeks, his forearms gripping and flexing the wheel while he steered.

When they hit a particularly large divot and bounced back out, Rose's head hit the ceiling, making her rethink her ideas on awkward silence.

"Do you think you can drive like a _normal _person?" Rose had to yell in order to be heard over the noises.

That only caused Emmett to laugh louder and take an extra sharp turn. If she hadn't been wearing her seatbelt, she would most definitely have been flung over onto Emmett's lap, but as it was, she just got a bad dose of belt burn.

She reached up and rubbed her shoulder that was already hurting from when she fell into Emmett's bedroom door that morning. "Seriously, I'm not as durable as you are," she yelled again.

Emmett looked over to see her massaging the hurt shoulder. Immediately, he slowed down to a normal speed, which was still too fast for the amount of rain being released from the sky, but was better than the way he _had_ been driving. He reached one hand over and started rubbing her shoulder as he steered the jeep with his other.

"Sorry," he said. "I get a little carried away in this kind of weather."

"Apparently," Rose muttered under her breath.

His hand kneaded her shoulder. It felt better than amazing, better than heavenly, better than miraculous, better than the summation of all of those adjectives. His fingers found pressure points on her shoulder that turned her to melted butter where she sat. It was all she could do to suppress herself from moaning out loud.

"Emmett." It came out sounding more like a plea than a request for his attention. "Emmett," she tried again, more forcefully. "You can…"

She was about to tell him he could stop when he hit just the right spot, making her lose control of her higher functions. She couldn't hear anything outside her heartbeat. With her peripheral vision, she could see Emmett smirk slightly before letting her go.

Now that Emmett had stopped driving like a maniac, only the sound of the rain kept the jeep from being utterly silent. Even with the background noise, Rose could feel the friction in the air between them. It was deliciously electric and sent both of their imaginations on their own silent journeys.

Emmett's hand reached down to shift gears, and Rose could only think of his hand massaging her shoulder. Rose bit her lip and Emmett could only thing of taking it inside his mouth. He turned the steering wheel and she wanted to be wrapped in his arms. She exhaled with a tremor and he wanted to be the cause of it.

Both of them were going to have to gain an upper hand on their more primal instincts if they were going to make it through the day without mauling each other. And here Rose thought that her life couldn't get any more complicated.

"I'll drop you by the back door so you don't have to run through the rain," Emmett said as he pulled into the driveway.

Rose nodded her head and began attempting to unbuckle her seat belt with shaky hands. His jeep was equipped with tedious harnesses that took a ridiculous amount of time to get in and out of.

When Emmett pulled up to the door, she was still trying to escape. He leaned over and began to un-harness her, intentionally lingering longer than necessary. His hands brushed against the soft fabric of her scrubs making Rose turn her head to the ceiling to pray. She prayed for the strength to not jump on top of him and start dry humping then and there.

The second she heard the final click, she threw open the door and slid out of the jeep. Emmett looked at her, surprised, but with a smile that told her he knew exactly what he was doing to her.

"Thanks," Rose said, and closed the door to rush into the hospital.

Once Rose was inside, she breathed a sigh of relief. She was grateful for the neutral haven the hospital corridors offered her. As long as she could make herself stay away from Emmett during the workday, she might make it through in one piece. As it was, the drive to work had nearly made Rose come apart. Rose prided herself on her strength and ability to maintain her cool, but Emmett had a way of unraveling all that. It was disconcerting to say the least.

Rose went straight for Bella's room to check on her. Even though she knew that James would be secured in his room just down the hall, she couldn't help but feel concern for her sister and sometimes brother.

Bella was huddled on her bed, arms wrapped around her legs when Rose walked in.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

Bella looked up at Rose; her eyes were devoid of life. "He's gone," she said simply.

"What do you mean? Who's gone?" Rose asked

"Edward," Bella said meekly.

Rose didn't know exactly what to say. She wanted to reassure her that he would be back, but if Bella was getting better, Rose was all for it. The only thing she could think to do was hug her, and she did.

After a few moments had passed, Rose let go. "Have you thought that maybe it's for the better? Maybe, if he really is gone, you can live a normal life. You could get a job, get married…you could even have kids."

Bella shook her head and curled up even tighter. She didn't want any of that, not without Edward.

"I'll have Jasper come in and check on you as soon as he gets here, okay?"

Bella nodded her head again, but wouldn't look up.

As Rose made her way back down the hall to the nurse's station, lost in her concern over Bella, she smelled something strong and sweet. It was like someone had doused on a gallon of rose water along with something else. She turned the corner to find the desk and every available space covered in roses and violets. It was a little ridiculous, but absolutely beautiful.

Behind the bouquets, Rose could see Kate's blonde hair piled haphazardly in a bun on top of her head.

"Who are all these flowers for?" Rose asked.

"They're for you, silly." Kate's head peeked up above the roses. "They were delivered early this morning. There's a card around here somewhere…" Kate's voice trailed off as she began rustling through the multiple bouquets. "Ah, here it is." Her arm extended up above the roses and she passed off a little envelope to Rose.

Even before she opened it, she knew who it was going to be from. Royce had a tendency to be overly dramatic with the gestures of romance to a point where it was so cliché that they lacked not only originality, but any real feeling.

_Rosie, _

_I'm sorry. Please forgive me. _

_I love you, _

_Royce_

Rosie was his nickname for her, one that she absolutely detested. She tore the card into tiny pieces and came around the desk to drop it into the trash bin.

"So, what did you do to deserve such an embarrassing display of flowers?" Kate asked.

"I walked in on Royce sleeping with his secretary, and then I left him for it."

Kate, who was rarely at a loss for words, opened and closed her mouth a few times before nodding her head. "Yep. That'll do it I guess."

Rose shrugged her shoulders. "Feel free to take them home with you. As many as you want. I plan on tossing whatever's left."

"What the…" Emmett's voice trailed off as he took in the jungle of flowers surrounding the desk. "Are these from - ?"

"Yes," Rose answered. There was no emotion in her voice.

"Un-_fucking_-believable," he said.

Rose nodded her head in agreement.

"Want them gone?" he asked.

"Please."

"Fuckwad," Emmett mumbled under his breath, and then called Mike to help him clear the bouquets.

"So. Some weather, huh?" Kate made an attempt at small talk.

"Yeah, I think it's going to get worse before it gets better, though."

"I hope not too much worse." And in answer to Kate's hopes, the sound of thunder cracked through the sky, sounding uncomfortably close to the hospital.

"I don't envy you today," Kate said, gathering her bags.

"Me either," Rose sighed.

The patients always seemed to be more on edge when there were thunderstorms, and infinitely harder to handle. Usually on days like these they kept the patients confined to their rooms.

She would have called Alice to tell her that there was no need for her to come in, but with the thunder and all the electricity that was in the air, she didn't have to look at her phone to know there was no signal. She could only hope that Alice made it to work safely and that the storm played itself out before they left that evening.

"Well, I'll see you tomorrow." Kate patted Rose on the back. "Hang in there, kid," she said, gesturing to the motivational poster on the wall of a kitten hanging on a branch.

Rose would typically have gone over the charts at the station, but the overpowering smell of the flowers was starting to make her sick. Instead, she decided to go check on the patients to see how they were faring with the storm.

Lauren was sitting motionless on her bed, looking out the window into the rain. Half of her hair was still choppy from her self-beautification attempt. Rose made a mental note to finish cutting it later.

Jessica was in the next room, talking animatedly to her pillow. At least she didn't seem to be disturbed by the storm.

Billy was rolling around in circles so fast that it made Rose dizzy even to watch. He looked like he was doing some sort of rain dance and trying to bring the clouds closer with an imaginary lasso. He had torn apart his pillow again and had a couple of the white down feathers stuck in the back of his hair.

Carlisle, who was down the next hall, sat at a desk checking the pulse of a chair with a stethoscope Jasper had given him. After deciding it was in cardiac arrest, he attempted CPR. Sadly, the chair did not survive, causing him to call its death at 10:08am.

Rose was hesitant to look into James' room. She wasn't sure she wanted to know what he was doing. As she got closer to his door, she tried to quiet the soles of her shoes against the linoleum. When she peeked in the window, the room appeared empty, causing her heart to still for a moment.

She put her head up against the glass, trying to peer in further, but he was nowhere to be seen. She knew that she wasn't supposed to go in there without Emmett, but if he was missing, she needed to know. There were too many people helpless in their rooms.

Rose's heart was pounding desperately in her chest. "He will be in there," she chanted repeatedly. Her fingers trembled slightly, making it difficult to place the key in the lock, but eventually she managed it.

"Mr. Witherdale?" Rose called into the room, only opening the door enough for her voice to carry through. There was no answer. Rose bent down to look under the bed through the crack, but couldn't see far enough to see whether he was in there or not.

"James? Are you here?" Rose asked again, her voice more steady than she felt. Her heart was thudding erratically in her chest. She wasn't sure how much more it could take. She held her breath, still crouched low, and pushed open the door another inch.

Before she could brace herself, the door swung open. James had been hiding behind it, waiting for her to open it enough for him to wrench it out of her hands. Rose fell back onto the linoleum, hands braced below her.

She looked up at James in surprise as he hovered over her. In the wheel chair, she hadn't realized how large he was; as he smiled down, his hair wild and unruly about his head, she was all too aware. In that moment, she was sure he was going to kill her.

He crouched down, slowly, maintaining eye contact and brought his face within inches of hers. He didn't say anything, just turned his head at varying angles as if getting a better glimpse into the depths of her violet eyes. He grabbed her face and roughly licked her up the side of her cheek. Then, he sprung out of his animalistic crouch and shot down the hall.

As soon as she could get up, she smashed the emergency alarm at the end of the hallway. The alarm began to blare loudly and strobe lights flashed at infrequent intervals making the hospital look like some sort of eerie rave scene. The only thing missing was glow sticks.

Rose ran first to Bella's room, to ensure it was locked, and then headed straight for the nurse's station where a crowd of employees and hospital guests had gathered.

"What's going on?" Jasper stood in front of Rose as she panted, trying to catch her breath.

"James got out. I was checking in on the patients because of the storm, and when I got to his room, I couldn't see him inside. I opened the door just a crack, but he wrenched it out of my hands. He was hiding. And then he ran out into the hall. I'm so sorry," Rose said, still breathing heavily.

Jasper didn't chastise Rose, but he certainly wasn't pleased. By now, in addition to the alarms and flashing lights, some of the patients had begun pounding on their doors, afraid of what was going on.

Jasper moved around to the back side of the desk where the main controls for the alarm were. After he turned off the alarm, he addressed the group, "Rose, I want you to stay here with the guests. Emmett, you go down to the basement. Eric, Angela, you take the left corridor. Mike and I will take the right. Try not to look too concerned. We don't want to scare the patients any more than they already are." As the hospital staff dispersed, Rose looked at who was left with her and was not pleased with who she found there.

Royce had moved to stand next to Rose, as if he were planning on protecting her. He had Ben Cheney with him, the owner of The Lodge. Ben had a large picnic basket with him and two candelabras slung over his arms. He was dressed like a waiter at a fancy restaurant. Rose rolled her eyes.

Then there was Alice, looking like she was about to go to a nightclub in an incredibly short skirt and a deep v-neck. Actually, with the lights still flashing, she fit the scene more than anyone else in the group.

Also, it was Wednesday, which is when the support dog was scheduled to come and visit with the patients. Nessie was crouched down by her dog, Jacob. He really looked more like a wolf hybrid than anything else. He was a little large, but the patients seemed to like him. Rose wasn't fond of dogs, however, and tended to keep her distance.

"Royce, what the hell are you doing here?" Rose asked. "I think I was pretty clear about where we stood."

Royce looked at her, opening his eyes widely to attempt an innocent look. It didn't work. It just made him look like he had something in his eye, and effectively annoyed Rose even more than she already was.

"Rosie, you don't mean it. I _need_ you baby. I said I was sorry. And I am. I'm so sorry." He pouted his lips.

"No you're not." Rose shook her head in disbelief. "And why the hell is Ben Cheney here dressed like a penguin? Sorry, Ben."

Ben shrugged his shoulders stiffly. The personal drama was making him a little uncomfortable.

"I thought we could have breakfast together," Royce said.

"You're an idiot," Rose stated simply.

Royce was finally starting to get the picture that maybe there wasn't a hope for them.

"Fine. I'll just leave," he huffed and started to head for the exit. "Come on, Ben."

"Royce," Rose called.

He kept walking.

"Royce," Rose called louder. "You can't leave. The hospital's on lockdown until we find James."

Royce turned slowly around. "You're kidding me, right?"

Rose shook her head.

"Well, can I use the bathroom then?"

"You know where it is," Rose said rolling her eyes.

Ben came back to stand next to Alice and set the basket down. Once Royce was gone, Rose apologized. "I'm sorry you came all the way out here for this, Ben."

"It's cool." He shrugged again.

The thunder continued to crackle in the distance while the group stood around silently, all hoping that James wouldn't find them instead of someone else finding him.

Alice went to stand by Rose. "You okay? You're having kind of a rough couple days, aren't 'ya?"

"That's the understatement of the century," Rose grumbled. "So, would you care to explain the skanky wardrobe?"

Alice looked positively wicked as she smiled up at Rose. "I was thinking about giving your storage closet suggestion a try." Then her eyebrows creased downward, making her look like a petulant little girl. "But I guess that's out now."

"I'm sure you'll get your chance," Rose said, patting her on the shoulder.

Just when Rose was about to radio Jasper, the roaring sound of thunder shook the entire building, making her arm hair stand on end. Not a second later, the electricity went out. But without the electricity, the patient's rooms automatically unlocked. As the patients wandered out of their rooms into the pitch black hallway, a scream broke the silence from somewhere in the hospital.

* * *

**End a/n: **If you're interested in talking about State of Delusion in a group setting, my dearest SideKick55 has set up a thread over at Twilighted. While you're there, you can visit her Canon thread too. You can also drop in over at twilight20somethings.

Much love to you readers and let's do away with these awkward silences. Leave me a review. They're about as lovely as Emmett's massage's.


	6. Fruit Baskets

**a/n:** Sorry for the delay my dears. It's been a doozy of a weekend/week for me and at current, my brain resembles tapioca. Grey tapioca.

A great big THANKS and a hug to SideKick55 for making the time to beta this even when trying to finish the Canon Epilogue...and how much did we all love THAT?!

* * *

**Ch 6 – Fruit Baskets**

Rose's head jerked from left to right trying to determine which direction the scream came from, but the blackness that had enveloped the hospital after the lights went out was impenetrable. Alice moved to stand closer to Rose.

"Where do you think that came from?" Alice asked.

"I don't know. It was probably just a patient surprised by the lights going out," Rose replied, though she wasn't entirely convinced that was the case. There were screams, and then there were _screams_. Rose feared for whoever the anonymous shriek had erupted from. She could still feel it vibrating through her body, awakening all her senses with an uncomfortable chill.

"I think it was a girl," Ben said. Rose could make out his faint silhouette standing next to another smaller one that she assumed was Nessie.

"Rose?" Jasper's voice crackled over the radio. Before she had even moved to get around the counter, Alice flung herself across to reach it first.

"Jasper? Are you okay? What's going on?" Alice asked.

The radio was full of static, cutting off every few words. "Alice? Is that -? Where's Rose? I don't really - yet. I take it the - didn't come fr - any of your group?"

"Rose is here next to me," Alice replied. "Everyone here's accounted for. Well, except for Royce. He went to the bathroom. I wouldn't put it past him to scream like a girl though."

Rose snatched the radio back from Alice. "Jasper, this is Rose. I'll start rounding up the patients into the common room and get a head count. Are you going to keep looking for James?"

"That's - good idea. And - Mike and I will continue searching - I don't think - or Mike took a radio, so we'll just - to wait for them to - back. Keep your radio - you and I'll let you - if I find him."

Rose hooked the radio onto the pocket of her scrubs and turned to face the group.

"Ben, Alice, would you mind taking the left wing and try to get the patients to stay in the common room?" Rose asked.

"You don't happen to have a flash light do you?" Ben looked a little more than perturbed to be wandering the pitch black halls with a variety of certified crazy people wandering free, not to mention James, who made the rest of the patients look like harmless kittens.

"No," she replied, shaking her head. "We're supposed to be on a backup generator for things like this, but I don't know what's happened to it. We're just going to have to walk carefully. Let Alice deal with the patients, though, she'll know how to handle them. I'm going to go get Bella first. She wasn't doing so great when I came in this morning."

Alice hugged Rose. "Be careful, okay?"

"You too. Nessie, would you mind coming with me?"

Nessie, who had been quiet throughout the events so far, nodded her head and followed Rose down the hallway. Generally Rose would have been less than thrilled to be stuck with the dog, but at the moment she was grateful for him. She knew that if they came across James, Jake would undoubtedly protect them.

Nessie was still in high school and was volunteering at the hospital for extra credit. Though she had been coming in for months now, Nessie was so quiet that Rose didn't really know much about her. Regardless, she was fond of the girl. There was a natural innocence that radiated from her and elicited Rose's maternal instincts. She regretted that Nessie had come in today almost as much as she wished that Bella was anywhere else.

The first patient they came across in the dim hallway was Carlisle. He was standing outside Esme's room, guarding the entrance.

"Carlisle," Rose said. His head snapped up in her direction.

"Nurse Rose. What's going on? Why is it so dark?" he asked in an authoritative voice.

"There's something wrong with the back-up generator. Everything's okay though. Is Esme in there?"

Rose could see the outline of his head nod. "I can't remember how to knock," he said, embarrassed that he couldn't get in and moved aside for Rose.

She knocked on the door in the strange pattern. Inside, the room was just as dark, but she could make out Esme's figure in the chair.

"Who's there?" Esme called.

"It's Rose." Rose stepped into the room and paused halfway across. She was already beginning to feel effected by the stress. Usually, she hardly had to count the syllables. With everything that was going on, however, her mind was a jumbled mess. She knew that this would not be the time for Esme to have a breakdown and took her time over the phrasing. "We're moving everyone to the common room. Will you go with Carlisle?"

Esme stood up gracefully and nodded her head. "Of course," she said.

"Carlisle, will you take Esme with you to the common room and keep an eye on her there?"

Carlisle stepped into the room and offered Esme his arm. In the dark, she saw Esme take it and together they disappeared into the shady depths of the hallway. She felt awful leaving them to fend for themselves, but she knew Carlisle would take care of her.

Rose was positioned in front of Nessie as they took off down the hallway once again. Jacob's nails clicked lightly on the tile floors in a steady rhythm while her thoughts became shrouded with apprehension. She was concerned that Bella had wandered out of her room and that she wouldn't be able to find her. She was anxious about Emmett prowling around in the basement alone. He was more than capable of physically protecting himself, but Rose could imagine a dozen scenarios where he had the potential to be hurt. She was worried that James wouldn't be found or worse, that she and Nessie would be the ones to find him.

She could still feel his wet tongue on her cheek though the saliva had long since dried. She could still see the wild longing for freedom in his eyes. He was an animal that had been penned up too long and would do anything to escape with no concern over hurting anyone that got in his way. Her initial conclusion that he was lethal was a definite understatement.

Jacob's nails continued to tap along the tile, but their steady rhythm had altered minutely as they approached Bella's hallway. Rose's hand had found the top of Jacob's tall shoulders as they walked and she could feel his course hair bristling beneath her palm. Someone was at the end of the hall; someone Jacob didn't recognize the scent of.

Rose squinted her eyes to focus her vision, but she still couldn't see any further than her nose. Nessie had moved closer to Rose, standing on tip-toe to see over her shoulder. The leash in her hand was taut as Jacob pulled forward. His chest rumbled deeply with aggravation.

No matter how hard she looked, she couldn't see who was there, but with Jacob's heightened sense of smell, she didn't doubt that the hallway was occupied. The question was, whether or not it was safe to make themselves known. Before she could actually make the decision to continue, Mother Nature made it for her. A flash of lightening lit up the window behind the girls. It was brief, but it cast their shadows far down the hallway like a compass pointing to its unidentified occupant.

James was standing in front of Bella's door, his eyes glued to the window when he realized he wasn't alone. The temporary light source died and twoMississippi's later, the harsh clash of the breaking sound barrier was mixed with rapidly approaching footsteps. Jacob's growls were more audible now, ricocheting around them.

"James," Rose called out into the darkness. "We need to get everyone into the common room." Her voice came out far more calm and commanding than she felt.

His footsteps picked up pace.

"James, you need to come with me," Rose said loudly.

James must have been at a full sprint now, each footstep was harder and closer together. Rose braced herself for impact and her hands clenched into fists at her sides. The contact that came wasn't what she expected, being that it was only a blast of air as James passed them by completely and headed off into the abyss of darkness.

Rose's heart beat furiously in her chest and her breathing was staggered. She quickly grabbed Nessie's hand and dragged her down the hallway, slamming open Bella's door. She half expected to see her shape laying broken on the floor, but Rose exhaled with great relief when she saw that Bella was in the same position she had left her in, unaware of her escaped spectator.

Jacob beat Rose across the room, pulling his leash from Nessie's hand, and jumped up onto the bed. He dragged his long, wet tongue across her hands and nuzzled her face out from hiding.

"Ew, Jake." Bella pushed him off the bed. He sat next to Nessie unfazed, thumping his tail on the floor happily.

"Are you okay, Bella?" Rose asked, attempting to look her sister over in the dark.

"Physically, yes." Bella sighed and pushed Rose's probing hands away.

"We need to move everyone to the common room," Rose said. "Get your robe on and let's go." She wanted to get back to the others in case James decided to make a surprise return. Something about the look on his face when he saw Bella through the window made her want to keep Bella as far away from him as possible.

Back in the common room, Rose did a head count of the patients. Aside from James, only Billy, Jessica and Lauren were missing. Also, Royce had yet to make his return from the restroom.

The majority of the patients were scattered in the center of the floor. Carlisle and Esme were in another corner of the room, far from where quiet talking was taking place. He had intelligently found Esme some ear muffs so that she couldn't hear the uneven syllabled conversations around her. Bella sat in an armchair behind Rose with Nessie and Jacob at her feet. Her hand reached down, rubbing between Jacob's ears.

A few moments later, Jasper and Mike returned.

"How are we on the head count?" asked Jasper as he stood next to Alice.

"We're missing Lauren, Jessica, and Billy. Emmett, Angela, and Eric haven't come back yet either. Nessie and I ran into James outside Bella's room, though. She's fine, but he ran off in the dark."

Royce walked casually into the room, interrupting their conversation, "Have we found the psycho yet? Believe it or not, I have better things to do with my time."

"Where the hell have you been?" Rose demanded.

"Why, were you _worried_ about me, schnookums?"

Rose glared at him but the effect was lost in the dark since they could only make out each others figures.

"This situation is already out of control," Jasper said. "Both of you need to check your emotions for the time being. Understood?"

"Some therapist _you_ are. Aren't we supposed to _talk_ about our emotions?" Royce mocked.

"There is a time and place for everything. And unless you want me to tranquilize you right here and now, you'll keep your mouth shut, sit down, and stay out of my way." Jasper's tone was calm, but dead serious.

Royce stalked toward the far end of the room, all but disappearing into the dark.

"Alright," Jasper continued as he turned back to Rose. "We'll wait for the others to come back before dividing up again. You said you saw James? Do you know which direction he went?"

"No." Rose shook her head. "It was too dark to tell. We didn't even know he was down there until Jacob started growling."

Jasper moved an empty chair and sat down, rubbing his hands across his face. "Here's the plan. Once Eric, Angela and Emmett come back, we'll spread out again. You and Alice can stay here with Ben and the patients. Make sure they stay put. Emmett and Eric can take half of the building and Mike and I will take the other half. We'll look for Lauren, Jessica, Billy, and James."

"There's no need to look for Jessica," Angela said, nearly stumbling into the room. Eric had his arm draped across her shoulder to support his weight as he limped alongside her.

"What happened?" Jasper asked and grabbed Eric from her.

Ben brought a folding chair over to Angela and offered her a seat. "Eric is fine," Angela responded somberly and sat down, a solitary tear sliding down her cheek. "We found Jessica at the base of the stairs with her neck broken. It was awful. The scream you heard, that was Eric. He fainted when he saw her and nearly went tumbling down after her. Luckily, I grabbed the back of his shirt and he only bruised a knee."

"I did not faint. Fainting is for girls," Eric lied half-heartedly.

"So's screaming like a girl," Angela retorted rolling her eyes.

Jasper cut them off. "Alright, alright. All that matters is that the two of you aren't hurt."

Emmett rolled Billy into the room and all attention diverted him. His scrubs were stained with something, but Rose couldn't tell what it was in the dark. Behind him, Laurent held a spatula in his hand like it was a weapon.

"I found Jessica in the stairwell," Emmett said shaking his head. "I checked her pulse, but she's dead. And I don't know much about forensics, but my guess is that she was pushed."

"Eric and Angela found her too," Jasper said.

Emmett looked around the room. "I guess we've got everyone here then except for James and Lauren." His eyes landed on Royce. "What the hell is _he_ still doing here?"

"No one leaves until we locate James," Jasper answered. "Besides, if what you said is right, this is a murder scene now, and we're all technically suspects. The police wouldn't take kindly to his leaving before they get here, so I'm afraid we're all stuck until the storm blows over. Speaking of which, we need to break up into groups to try and find James since he's our most likely suspect. Eric, how are you doing? Do you think you can go with Emmett?"

Eric attempted to stand, but his legs wobbled beneath him like a newborn foal. "I'll take that as a no," Jasper said with a sigh. "Rose, you and Emmett take the left half. Mike and I will take the right. I'd say it's probably best to start off at the end and work your way back to the center. Do you still have the radio?"

Rose unhooked it from her pocket and held it up. "Got it," she said.

"Keep it on you. I'll call you if we find him. Ben, lock the doors after we leave."

Ben nodded his head and as the search party left, the doors clicked behind them.

"I need to change scrubs first," Emmett said to Rose, noting his blood stained shirt.

As they walked into the locker room, he pulled his shirt off over his head. Rose turned away to give him privacy though in the dark she could barely make out his profile. Still, her cheeks flushed with warmth and she was grateful for the first time that day to be in complete darkness.

"You don't have to turn around you know." Emmett attempted a laugh, but it was a shell of what it normally was. "It's not like I have anything you haven't seen."

Rose felt him come up behind her. "Alright," he said, spinning her around slowly by the shoulders until she faced him. "All covered up." The corner of his mouth twitched up into a half smile.

"Are you okay?" Rose asked. He was trying to put on a happy face, but was failing pretty miserably.

He shrugged and his smile grew sadder. "It is what it is."

Rose forgot to stop herself, and if she was being honest, she no longer cared to. Her arms wrapped tightly around his waist and she pressed her face to his chest. "I'm so sorry you had to see that, Emmett," she said.

Rose could feel him take a deep breath. "Thank you." He gently rubbed her back, and then unwrapped her arms. "We've got to find James, though. If he's the one that hurt Jessica, he's too dangerous to have running around. Especially since we haven't found Lauren yet."

He grabbed her hand in his and led her through the door.

They walked to the end of the hospital together; the only sound between them was their quiet footsteps and the sporadic tear of thunder. Emmett's eyes roved down each hallway as they passed, hoping to catch a glimpse of James so the day could come to a close and he could stop worrying about all the people he loved.

Occasional flashes of lightening were welcome indicators of how far they had to go before they started searching through the rooms. The hospital itself wasn't exactly sprawling, but in the dark it seemed as if it stretched on forever; a labyrinth cloaked in shadows.

Once they got to the end of the hall, they began moving through the rooms, Rose opening the door and Emmett looking inside. He was torn between wanting to find James, and wanting Jasper to find him. At the moment, there was nothing more that Emmett wanted to do than to knock James unconscious. But with Rose there, running across him would be a risk he'd prefer Jasper to face.

"It's about time I finally got you in one of these things," Emmett joked as they searched through the large kitchen storage area.

Rose rolled her eyes, but couldn't help but smile. Emmett was Emmett, after all. And his ability to make light of any situation, even one as sinister as this, was a welcome distraction.

"I'm sure you must be _so_ proud," Rose quipped. "It only took searching for a potential murderer to make it happen." She walked down a row of paper towels and toilet paper. Emmett met her there when she reached the end.

"It would have happened either way," Emmett said. Rose couldn't see his dimples in the dark room, but knew they were there, taunting her. "Maybe I should thank James when we find him. You know, for speeding up the process."

Rose turned around to head for the door. "Right, you can send him a fruit basket for getting me in here and…_nothing happening_," she teased over her shoulder.

Rose had just dared Emmett without realizing it. He grabbed her hips and spun her around to face him. He brought his face down and brushed his nose gently against hers with a smile on his face. "Nothing?" he asked.

"Emmett, really," Rose tried to shove at his chest. "Now is _not_ the time."

His face inched even closer. "No?" he asked in a whisper, his lips coming close enough to where they brushed against hers.

"Emmett." Rose pushed again, harder this time, but it still wasn't enough to make him budge. Her head was bent as far back from his face as possible, but it was no use. He was everywhere. Try as she might, she couldn't keep the corners of her mouth quirking up into a smile.

"Emmett!" This time she nearly yelled his name. Her lips pouted out slightly, even through the grin, and he seized the opportunity.

His lips were soft but firm as they moved against hers. He gently kissed and licked at her bottom lip, an attempt at gaining entrance. Rose gave up. She was through protesting, and decided to let her more rational senses, the ones telling her this was completely inappropriate, take a walk.

With a sigh, she let her lips part slightly. Emmett took her bottom lip in his mouth, biting down tenderly before gently brushing his tongue against hers. Rose was on auto-pilot now. Letting her subconscious desires take the lead, and as such, had leaned her entire body into Emmett gripping his head in her hands, feeling the lustrous black curls soft against her fingers.

Emmett spun them around without breaking contact with her mouth and pushed her up against the wall, deepening the kiss. He let his hands run down her sides, his thumbs brushing just close enough to her breasts to tease her, before he planted them on her hips and pushed himself away with a victorious smile.

Rose stood panting against the wall, her eyes fluttering, her lips bruised, and her body craving more. Emmett made a show of not saying a word, but carefully arranged his shirt before walking out the door.

Rose was plastered against the wall for a few seconds, regaining her composure when she spotted something moving from the back of the storage closet. As the silhouette moved out of a crouching position and began moving towards her, the muted blend of grays took on more clarity.

James had been in there the entire time. And now she was alone with him.

* * *

**End a/n:** Can I have a flashlight please? Reviews are the best thing ever. EVER.

Oh – and for those of you, like me, who are left wanting...more...when it comes to the Emro scenes...blame SideKick55. She's a torturous little villain, ain't she?

On the bright side, I'm storing up all the Emro make-out scenes for future use and maybe...future outtakes? All in its own time, however.


	7. Who Dunnit

**A/N:** Hurah! I made it for Skittle's Sunday! Anyhoo - on to my thanks, and this time, there's a lot. First and foremost, the lovely Sidekick55 who has retired as my beta since I have two shiny new beta's, and since she has to write GN so I have something to read. You, my dear, are the flip to my flippy floppys. And a shout out to my new beta's, crysross and SilentNC. You're lovely. Last, but by no means least, you. You there, who is reading this story. You make my day. My week. My month. My year. Thanks for bearing with me while I battled with writer's block (which reminds me - thanks to Mr. Horrible for helping out in that department).

Also - while I may not have made the final round of The Indie Twifics, it doesn't get you out of voting! Please, go vote for your favorite authors. The link is on my profile page.

And on with the story...and cliffie ahead.

* * *

**Ch 7 – Who Dunnit**

James continued to creep closer, slowly slinking forward. Rose had to strain her eyes to make out his shape in the dark, , and even then it was difficult to distinguish him from the shadows.

"James," Rose said, s, smoothing her hands nervously down her sides. "We've been looking for you everywhere."

"I can tell," he replied. His voice seemed to come at her from all angles. "You searched…what was his name? Emmett? You seemed to search _Emmett_ pretty thoroughly."

Rose blushed, at a loss for words while James continued to inch nearer.

"Doesn't it seem a little inappropriate to be making out with someone when there's a _crazy _person on the loose? Especially with a girl lying dead at the bottom of a stairwell?" James tsked.

Rose ignored his question. Her hand gently traced the wall in search of the exit. "Let me take you to the common room. Everyone is waiting for us there," she said.

James was in front of her now, leaning intimately forward. The fabric of their clothes gently whispered against each other and she could feel the heat emanating from his body. He placed his hand against the wall next to her head before she could find the exit. "I like the storage closet just fine," he breathed, running his nose alongside her face.

Rose's fight or flight instincts were kicking in as she cringed away from his touch. Her mind quickly picked through her present situation, looking for a way out. On the one hand, James hadn't actually tried to attack her yet; he seemed to enjoy pushing the limits of being inappropriate and making her as uncomfortable as possible. On the other, she couldn't be sure that was all he was after. She knew she had to get out of the closet, and fast.

"I don't know what you got away with at your last hospital, but you don't scare me." Rose pushed him away from her with a brave face. "So this is how it's going to happen. You're going to walk out of this closet with me to the common room where you'll let the orderlies strap you into a straight jacket for safe keeping. You won't make a fuss, you won't run away, and you most _certainly_ will not be licking or smelling any more people. Do you understand me?"

"But that's no fun," James said. He tried to move back in toward her, but Rose still had her arms outstretched.

"Frankly, I don't care whether you think it's fun or not. That's how it's going to be. Are you ready?" Rose dropped her arms and spun around to face the door. Unfortunately, James wasn't through with her.

***

Outside the closet, Emmett leaned against the wall with a smug grin spread across his face. He imagined the many possibilities of Rose's expression when she came out; she would either feign indifference or act completely infuriated.

The kiss was nothing like he expected. Considering how stubborn Rose was, he assumed it would take more than a moment in a storage closet to actually open her up; however, only moments after their lips met, she began kissing him back in a way he wasn't prepared for. If it hadn't been for the murdering psychopath on the loose, he probably would have let things progress a lot further.

As Emmett played a montage of the morning's events in his head, he began to realize that Rose had been in the closet for quite awhile. Definitely longer than necessary. Worry swelled up in his chest. What if she hadn't been ready for the kiss? If he had pushed Rose too far, too fast, he'd never forgive himself. And neither would Alice.

Just as he was about to check on Rose, a loud crash came from inside the closet. Emmett charged in, finding toiletries spread across the floor at his feet and one of the shelves leaning against the wall. Next to it, James had Rose positioned in front of his body with his forearm pressed up against her neck in a chokehold to keep her from moving. He smiled at Emmett, unconcerned with his new audience.

Emmett's body tensed and his hands clenched into fists at his sides. "Let her go," he said.

"I don't think so," James snarled back, pulling Rose tighter against him.

Rose had her hands clamped to James's forearm, struggling to break free or at least to loosen his grasp enough so she could properly breathe. As it was, her breath was coming out in short, jagged spurts. She dug her nails into his skin but he didn't even flinch.

"You're making a big mistake, James. Let her go." Emmett took a slow step forward, , positioning himself just out of arm's reach from James but still blocking the way to the exit.

"I like her right where she is." James planted his lips on Rose's cheek and then nuzzled the side of her face with his nose. "I get what you see in her, mountain man. She's a real beauty. Typically, I prefer brunettes. But she'll do nicely. Won't you darlin'?" He took a step back as Emmett took another step forward. James's eyes were focused on Emmett's every movement.

Emmett wanted to throw himself across the small gap and tear Rose out of the insane criminal's arms, but he couldn't be sure that she wouldn't get hurt. It would only take a split second for James to snap her neck - efficiently eliminating everything he dreamed of having in his life.

"You don't want to do this," Emmett said again. He slowly inched from side to side, searching for a good angle, looking for a weakness in James's grasp. "You're not getting past me, and I won't let you hurt her. Can't you see that you're blocked in? You have _nowhere _to go."

"Who says I want to leave?" James smirked. He adjusted his grasp on Rose's neck. "Just one...quick...twist..." His hands drew tighter around her throat with each syllable, causing Rose to buck wildly, desperate for air.

Emmett realized it was now or never. He'd have to risk hurting Rose of it meant saving her life. With one swift, calculated lunge, his fist found its target. There was a resounding crack as James loosened his grip just enough for Rose to break free. He doubled over, holding his side where Emmett punched him.

Emmett sank down next to where Rose had dropped to her knees. Her hands barely supported her weight as she dragged in deep, raspy breaths of air. "Are you okay?" Emmett asked. He held her head gingerly in his palms.

Rose nodded slightly, her throat too sore for speaking.

Emmett stood back up and crashed his colossal fist into the side of James's head, knocking him unconscious.

***

Back in the common room, everyone was finally accounted for. Lauren had been in the bathroom attempting to shear off the rest of her hair and effectively giving herself a choppy mullet when Jasper and Mike found her.

Except for Carlisle and Esme, who sat in a far corner attempting to stay out of earshot, and James, who was still unconscious facing the wall handcuffed to a wheel chair, everyone was grouped in the center of the room.

Rose sat between Bella and Alice while Jasper and Emmett stood in front of them, strategizing. Her eyes were unfocused as she struggled to suppress the memory of the storage closet. Every time she took a breath or attempted to swallow, however, the reminder was painfully present. She diverted her attention to Emmett and Jasper's conversation in hopes of distraction.

"Why don't I take my Jeep into town and see if I can't bring the police back?" Emmett offered.

Jasper shook his head. "It's no use. When we were searching for James, I noticed a tree fell down in the middle of the driveway. I'm guessing it was struck by lightening. Besides, I think we better stay put. It's too dangerous to be riding around with this wind."

"It's also dangerous having James roaming free with all the patients," Emmett replied.

"He's in a straightjacket. He can't exactly roam," Jasper said. "And...not to play devil's advocate here, but we don't actually know whether or not it was James that killed Jessica."

"What do you mean _we don't actually know_?" Emmett asked angrily. "Who the hell else could it be? He's already shown he has the capacity for murder by nearly strangling Rose to death."

"I'm not saying he isn't capable, but it could be any number of people. Just because James is the easy one to pin it on, it doesn't mean we shouldn't at least explore all the possibilities," Jasper said.

"He's not wrong," Alice agreed. "We don't even know if Jessica was actually pushed. For all we know, she could have fallen down the stairs."

"Oh, I doubt it was an accident," Jasper replied.

"Are you kidding me?" Emmett had to struggle to keep his voice down. "That fucking psycho was about to kill Rose before I walked in. And now you're trying to say it wasn't him?"

"I didn't kill her…" James's groggy voice cut clearly through the room, drawing all conversation to a halt. "The girl at the bottom of the stairs…I didn't kill her."

Emmett moved to stand up, prepared to go and put James back in a state of unconsciousness, but Jasper put his hand on the big man's shoulder, gently shaking his head. "Don't let him get to you."

"I didn't kill her," James said a third time, "but I know who did." He turned his head over his shoulder but wasn't able to make eye contact with anyone. "The person who did it is right here in this room, too."

"Do you want a matching gag to go with that straightjacket?" Emmett asked, trying to harness his rage. "Of course the killer is in the room, because _you're_ in the room."

"Calm down, Emmett," Alice said. "There's no point in getting all riled up. Jasper, what do you mean you don't think it was an accident?"

"Only that the stairs are nowhere near her room. Besides, every time Jessica managed to get out, she always went to the employee locker room to look for Mike. I think someone took her there and pushed her, but it could have been someone other than James. Whoever it was really only needed a moment alone with her." Jasper's hypothesis hung in the air around them.

"Then we still might have a murderer on the loose," Alice said after a few seconds of silence.

"This is ridiculous," Emmett said. "James is the logical killer in this. Why are we trying to place the blame on someone else?"

"What makes him more logical than anyone else?" Rose replied, speaking for the first time since she had been rescued from the closet. Bella lifted her head from Rose's shoulder with surprise.

Rose shrugged. "James is the easy assumption to make. It might make us all feel better to think it's him, but it would be careless to not consider every option. Don't get me wrong; he's dangerous, but we need to protect the patients, and we wouldn't be doing a very good job of that if we just made the easy assumption."

"James?" Alice asked. "How do you know who the murderer is?"

"I was at the base of the stairs when the person pushed her," he replied, keeping his head faced toward the wall.

"Well that's convenient," Emmett scoffed. "Why don't you just tell us who it is then?"

James continued to stare at the corner silently, refusing to share his knowledge.

Royce had been all but forgotten at this point, sitting off to the side by himself. "You sure are trying to pin the blame on James. Maybe it was you. After all, you did walk in here with blood on your scrubs. I see you've changed out of them now. That was fast. Trying to hide the evidence?" Royce sneered.

"That's the most ridiculous thing I've heard yet," Emmett balked.

Jasper attempted to diffuse the building tension. "Alright. Let's not start accusing everyone. I think at one point or another we've all had an opportunity to get Jessica alone, so we could go on like this all night. When was the last time anyone saw her alive?"

"I checked on all the patients this morning when I got in, so right around 10 a.m.," Rose said.

"Anyone else see Jessica this morning?" Jasper asked. There was silence. "Well, that narrows it down then. I guess we're looking at it happening sometime _around_ the time James got out, but that still leaves plenty of us free to have gotten to her."

"Hey, wasn't Royce missing too?" Emmett asked.

"Iwas in the bathroom," Royce said defensively.

"You were also gone a really long time," Alice responded.

"You know, if we're opening this up to speculation, we'll have to nail down the location of _every_ patient after the lights went out," Emmett pointed out.

Jasper leaned back into his chair with an exasperated sigh. "I think I should probably go take a look at the body."

"You aren't going to see much in the dark," Alice said. "I think we should try to locate some candles or something. Laurent, - "

"Oh!" Ben exclaimed, interrupting Alice. He slapped his hand to his forehead. He began rummaging through the forgotten picnic basket, pulling out four candle sticks and setting them into the candelabra that had been meant for Rose and Royce's lunch. "I forgot! I have taper candles."

"You're kidding me, right?" Alice asked. "We've been walking around in pitch black this whole time, and you've had freaking _taper candles_ sitting in that basket? How did you _not_ think of this sooner?"

"Pardon me for being a little pre-occupied with concern for my safety while there's a psycho murderer on the loose," Ben retorted.

"Maybe it's time we had lunch," Jasper suggested, noting everyone's irritable dispositions.

"Would anyone happen to have a lighter or matches?" Ben asked. "I think I left them at the restaurant."

Jasper shook his head. "It sounds like a kitchen trip is in order."

"I could actually use a bathroom break," Angela said.

"We'll go in groups. Laurent, Emmett, Ben -- go to the kitchen to scrounge up some food and matches. Does anyone else need to go to the restroom?" Jasper asked.

Nessie raised her hand. "I do."

"Anyone else?" Jasper waited, but no one else seemed interested. "Okay, Angela. You and Nessie go to the bathroom, but come straight back. The rest of us will stay here with the patients. Emmett, after you get back we'll go to the stairwell and see what we can find."

Emmett nodded and led Laurent and Ben out the door. Nessie, Jacob and Angela followed after.

"How's your neck feeling?" Bella asked as Jasper walked off to calm some of the patients. Rose's neck was starting to reveal heavy bruising, even in the dark.

"I'll be fine," Rose said, and then she sighed. "I can't wait to try to cover it up with makeup though."

"Don't worry about that," Alice said, gripping Rose's hand in hers. "I'm a wiz with the makeup. And in the meantime, we can get some pretty scarves to cover it up." She smiled at her reassuringly.

"How are _you_ doing?" Rose asked Bella.

Bella shrugged her shoulders. Before she could answer, footsteps came running down the hall toward the common room.

Ben jogged into the room. "Forgot the candles," he said, his reddened cheeks visible even in the dark. He leaned down and picked up the candelabra then hurried back out to catch up with Emmett and Laurent.

"That kid's a mess," Alice said, shaking her head.

The girls lapsed into silence as Jasper worked his way around the room with the medicine cart. He had grabbed it on his way back with Lauren. It was dangerous for both the patients _and_ the staff in this situation for the med schedule to be disrupted.

Just as Jasper finished force feeding Billy his pills, Emmett walked into the room pushing a cart piled with their lunch with one hand and stuffing a sandwich in his mouth with the other. Laurent and Ben followed behind, each holding candelabra that cast long, flickering shadows across the room.

"Soup's on!" Emmett declared with his mouth full.

Laurent began handing out the sandwiches to the patients as Emmett took a seat across from Rose. He pulled a plate from beneath his own and put a sandwich on it for Rose, setting it on her lap.

"Where's my sandwich?" Alice asked, looking pointedly at the other three sandwiches sitting on his plate.

"On the cart," he responded with a smirk.

The corner of Rose's mouth lifted slightly into a weak grin. "Thank you," she said quietly. Emmett nodded and continued shoving half a sandwich into his mouth haphazardly, crumbs falling lightly onto his shirt.

Rose took a small bite out of the corner even though she wasn't hungry, but swallowing proved to be too difficult. As she leaned over to set it down on the coffee table, Jacob tore into the room, barking wildly. His leash trailed behind him, Nessie nowhere in sight.

Emmett leapt out of his chair, spilling his sandwiches on the floor, and grabbed Jacob's leash. "Nessie? Angela?" he called, peering out the door. There was no answer.


	8. The Great Eating Utensil Massacre

I seriously have been trying to get this up here since 2am with no luck, but finally, here we are.

SideKick55 deserves red skittles for filling in for crysross while she was on vacay (sorry Crys dear - I was far too impatient to wait, but I still love you and await you always amazing comments) and silentNC gets skittles too for being quick-like with the beta'ing.

Anyhoo - I'm so happy to have actually made a Skittles Sunday for once. Enjoy lovelies and I await your comments eagerly!

**

* * *

Ch 8 – The Great Eating Utensil Massacre**

The minute Jacob came running into the common room without Nessie, Emmett knew something was wrong. The dog _never_ left her side.

"Angela? Nessie?" he called again a little louder. The only return was the echo of his voice.

Without giving it a second thought, Emmett tore out of the room, letting Jacob lead him down the left corridor. He prayed with each step that his worry was unfounded. Maybe Jake had just felt like going for a run. Maybe Angela and Nessie were talking or doing whatever it is girls do in the bathroom that always seems to take them so long. He slowed down as he approached the door, hardly pausing before pushing his way in...and he did have to push. There was something blocking the door, nearly tripping him as he stepped inside.

Jasper had taken off after Emmett with a candle in hand. As he approached, the bobbing glow slowly illuminated the bathroom to reveal two small heaps lying on the bathroom floor. Angela lay in a bundle all the way across the room, and Nessie was spread haphazardly across the doorway – the object that had been blocking the entrance.

Emmett dropped Jacob's leash and brushed past Jasper who stood just outside the doorway. His heart pounded furiously in his chest, anxious to catch whoever was responsible. He ran down the length of one hall and half the length of another before realizing that there was no one to be found. Whoever it was had made a speedy escape.

He tried to calm himself as he made his way back to the bathroom, but the anger had been building in him all day. It had started with Royce, continued with the death of Jessica, intensified in the storage closet with James, and now Angela and Nessie. He was ready to do some damage.

With a burst of anger, he planted his fist through the plaster wall at his side.

"Did that make you feel any better?" Jasper asked as he hovered above Nessie in the bathroom. She was on her back. Her sightless eyes were trained on the ceiling. A chopstick protruded from her chest and a stream of blood trickled onto the cold tile beneath her. Jasper pressed his fingers to the pulse point on her neck and shook his head.

Emmett ignored the question and brushed the white dust off onto his scrubs. "Is she...?" he began.

"She's gone," he said somberly.

Jasper walked across the room to where the second heap lay. Angela. Even from the doorway, Emmett could see the gentle rise and fall of her chest, indicating that she was still alive.

"Her heart rate is a little slow, but I think she's okay. She's got a pretty big bruise on her head though," Jasper said, carefully examining her.

"Who the hell is doing this?" Emmett asked in a reverent whisper.

Jasper shook his head again. "I don't know. Can you pick Angela up? I want to get back to the common room."

Emmett looked down. Jacob was lying on the floor, gently nosing at Nessie's dark blue tennis shoes. His whine was barely audible above the rain. She was so young. Too young.

Seeing death once in a lifetime would have been more than enough for any person, let alone twice in the same day. Emmett, who was generally so full of life and vivaciousness couldn't help but shed a tear for both girls lost that day. He knew that for as long as he lived, these scenes would continue to haunt him, provided he made it out of the hospital alive.

Emmett bent down, gently moving Jacob's leash out of the way of the pooling blood and crossed the room to pick Angela up. The warmth of her slight body in his arms was comforting. Even if she was passed out, she was alive. Warmth meant her blood was flowing and her blood flowing meant her heart was pumping. Amongst the horrible tragedies of the day, life was the only comfort any of them could grab hold of.

He treaded lightly down the hallway, careful not to jostle her. Jasper followed behind, leading Jacob. They stopped periodically along the way when Jacob would refuse to go any further. He kept looking back down the hall as if expecting Nessie to walk out the door or call him back to her.

The buzz of whispers ceased when Emmett walked in with Angela in his arms. Rose and Alice jumped off the sofa, setting pillows at the arm rest so he could lay her there comfortably.

It didn't escape Rose's notice that they were a person short. "What happened? Where's Nessie?" she asked with her eyes focused on Jacob. She knew, as Emmett had known, that Jacob without Nessie was not a good sign.

No one answered for a moment as Jasper took a seat, placing his head in his hands. Alice walked over to Jasper and leaned down to put her hand on his knee. Without looking, he covered it with his own.

Emmett laid Angela on the sofa, plumping the pillows at her head. "Nessie...she's..." Emmett tried to find a way to put it that didn't sound quite so harsh in his head. No matter how he phrased it though, the words still stung. "She's dead," he said concisely.

Rose's mouth opened, but she couldn't find anything worth saying. Even when she had argued that the killer may _not_ have been James, she didn't really believe it. Her sense of security was stripped away as she realized that there must be someone else in the hospital.

She let herself fall into an armchair next to the sofa and tilted her head to the ceiling. A flood of tears was threatening to break loose, but she had to remain strong. After wiping her hands across her face, she pulled herself together and stood up to look at Emmett. "Let's put Angela in the room next door and we can put someone on guard at the entry. I don't want her to be disturbed by the patients. There's a bed there at least, so she'll be comfortable."

Ben hovered above Angela, gently brushing tendrils of hair out of her face. "I'll guard the door," he said without looking up.

"I don't think that's a good idea," Jasper replied. His head was no longer bent forward, but he still gripped Alice's hand tightly. "I'd rather have a staff member on guard. Mike, would you mind?" he asked.

Mike's head popped up and his eyes opened wide. "Wait. You want _me_ to stay out in the hall _alone_? While there's a killer on the loose?"

"Man up, Newton," Emmett said with a sigh.

"We'll give you a candle," Jasper offered. "And you'll only be ten feet away from us. Just yell if you see anything."

"If I even have time to yell..." Mike grumbled.

Jasper stood up and walked over to examine Angela a little more thoroughly. "She'll need an MRI, but I think she'll be okay," he said as Emmett scooped her up.

"I'll come with you to get her settled," Rose said.

Rose followed Emmett out and was followed shortly by Mike. "Stay," she pointed to the doorway when they got to the room. Mike obediently leaned against the wall with his arms crossed against his chest. He looked warily down each hallway, but couldn't see farther than the few feet the candle lit up.

Inside the room, Emmett set Angela on the bed, propping her head up with a pillow. Rose went to the sink and prepared a wet hand towel to wipe across Angela's forehead. There was a small trickle of blood where she had been hit that traced its way across Angela's brow.

"Are you okay?" Rose asked Emmett. The light in the room flashed between a buttery yellow and stark grey as lightening lit up the darkly clouded sky through the window.

He shrugged. "Okay is a subjective term," he said. "How about you? Are you okay?"

Rose gently wiped the blood off Angela's brown and folded it over to wipe at a dark smudge on her arm. She mimicked his shrug. "Okay is a subjective term."

The corner of Emmett's mouth lifted in a half smile, but it held none of the depth of his usual hearty grins. Rose noticed his hand clenching open and close at his side and his grimace of pain.

"Let me take a look at that," she said, moving around to the other side of the bed.

"It's fine. It's not broken," Emmett said, but let her look at it anyways.

Rose placed his hand on top of hers, enjoying how the size of it covered hers entirely and his fingers stretched out past her wrist. His knuckles were slightly swollen and a few splotches of blood had already dried, but everything appeared to be in working order as he had said. Emmett watched as she took a clean portion of the wash cloth and gently wiped the area. She could practically feel his eyes follow the gentle strokes of the cloth removing specks of dust.

"Thank you," he said quietly, in a register not unlike his morning voice.

Rose nodded her head and walked back over to the sink, not prepared to have a repeat of the closet scene, especially with Mike right outside the door.

Someone had brought Mike a chair by the time they left Angela settled in bed, still unconscious. He sat in the chair rigidly, his head whipped from side to side at the tiniest noise.

"You're going to give yourself whiplash," Rose said. "Just relax."

"That's easy for you to say," Mike complained. "You're going back to a room full of people. I have to sit out here. Alone. With a crazed murderer on the loose."

Rose shook her head and continued back down the hallway. In the common room, Jasper and Alice were trying to figure out the best plan of action. Rose walked past them, straight to Bella.

Bella was leaned against the window sill, her eyes staring out into the darkness. "How are you doing?" Rose asked as she rubbed her sister's back.

Bella didn't answer.

"Bella?" Rose turned Bella around to face her. Her eyes were rimmed in crimson from tears long since dried up. Rose wrapped her in a hug.

"It's too much," Bella said weakly into Rose's shoulder. "First Edward, then Jessica and now Nessie." Her head shook. "It's too much."

"I know, I know." Rose crooned, stroking her back gently. "It will be okay. I promise you. We'll make it out. Both of us."

As Rose held her, Bella's tear ducts began working again. Rose's top was plastered to her shoulder with salty tears as she walked Bella to the sofa and sat down next to her, gently stroking her hair.

"What's the plan?" she asked Jasper quietly.

Jasper looked to Rose and Bella, his head nodding a silent question of Bella's emotional state. Rose shrugged tenderly with a fragile smile in response.

"I think we need to take a look at Jessica and see if there's any clues the killer may have left behind," Jasper said. "Also, maybe you can take a look at the generator? I know you have a knack for mechanics. If it's broken, hopefully you can fix it."

Rose nodded her head. "Sounds good. How do you want to do it?"

"I figure we can break into groups. You and Emmett can head to the basement and Alice and I will go examine Jessica," Jasper responded.

A chuckle came from the far corner of the room. "Yeah, _that's_ an excellent plan," James said with a derisive laugh.

Jasper continued, ignoring James. "We'll both take walkie-talkies so we can get in contact with each other. I want you to radio me every three to five minutes, updating me on your location just to be on the safe side."

"Unless they're too busy making out," James said bluntly.

Jasper's eyebrows drew down. "What is he talking about?" he asked.

"Nothing. He's crazy. He doesn't know what he's saying." Emmett tried, and failed, to sound convincing.

"Crazy is as crazy does," James said. "You two were making out in the closet when you were supposed to be searching for me. And you call _me_ crazy. You don't see me making out with anyone while there's a killer on the loose."

"You're about to make out with my fist if you don't shut your mouth," Emmett growled.

"Really, Emmett? I guess I expect that from you...but...Rose?" Jasper said with surprise.

Royce, who had been fading in and out of the shadows all day, stepped forward again. "You keep your hands off my fiancé," he grunted and even had the audacity to hover over where Emmett was seated.

"We're not engaged anymore," Rose said with a sigh and rolled her eyes.

"Didn't you get the memo?" Emmett stood up, using all his height to intimidate and hover over Royce. "She's _not _your fiancé," he repeated with a sneer.

Royce looked up into Emmett's haughty face and shoved him in the shoulder. "Get out of my face," he said. His voice slithered menacingly over each of the words.

Carlisle left Esme sitting in the corner of the room to stand next to Jasper.

"Gentlemen, I don't think I need to remind you of the gravity of our situation, do I?" Carlisle asked while looking back and forth between the two men. Emmett looked over at Carlisle and Jasper, and let out a huff of air, deflating his puffed up chest.

"No, Dr. Cullen, you don't," he said, and took a step back from Royce.

"Good. Royce, why don't you go and sit back down?" Carlisle phrased it as a question, but it sounded more like an order given to a petulant child. Emmett couldn't help but look over at Royce with a victorious grin etched on his face.

Royce's eyes narrowed. "You aren't even a doctor," he said with scorn.

Jasper and Emmett held their breath, waiting to see what Carlisle's response would be; even the storm outside seemed to quiet down in anticipation of his reaction. No one had ever contradicted Carlisle in all the time that they had been there, so they had nothing to go off of.

After a few seconds of silence that seemed to stretch on endlessly, Carlisle surprised them all by laughing lightly. "_Someone's _delusional," he said while moving his finger in a circle near his head. Jasper, Alice, Emmett, a, nd Rose all looked at each other, their eyes wide with astonishment.

"Eric and I can manage the patients while you're gone," Carlisle continued, then turned to Emmett and Rose. "In the meantime, I don't think I need to lecture you on how to act like proper adults and employees, do I? And I don't think I need to tell you how careless it was for you to involve yourselves in such inappropriate conduct in the middle of the hunt for a murderer. I care about the two of you. I only want you to be safe. Do you think you can keep it in check at least until we make it out of this alive?"

Emmett and Rose both looked properly chastised as Carlisle looked down on them. "Yes sir," they said in unison.

"Alright then." Carlisle turned to Jasper. "Dr. Whitlock, Alice, certainly it's about time the two of you realized your feelings for one another, but I expect the same code of conduct out of you as well. Let's represent this hospital the way it deserves," Carlisle said, and then returned to Esme.

They sat in an uncomfortable silence for a moment before beginning to follow through with their plan. "So..." Emmett said, "I guess Rose and I will head to the basement and check out that generator? Ready?" He asked Rose as he grabbed a candle out of the candelabra.

Rose nodded her head, still feeling slightly embarrassed after Carlisle's reprimand.

"Every three to five minutes," Jasper repeated to Emmett and grabbed one of the two remaining candles.

The pairs took off down the hallway, parting ways at the nursing station. Emmett and Rose continued on, maintaining silence. Her head was full of the implications of a murderer on the loose. She half expected to someone to jump out at any moment and end everything then and there.

The soft tapping of their shoes against the tile reverberated through the halls, creating a soothing rhythm. "Who do you think it is?" Rose asked.

Emmett shrugged. "I have no idea. Ben, Laurent, a, and I were in the kitchen when it happened, and the rest of you were in the common room. There was no way it could have been anyone in there. The only thing I can figure is that someone snuck in without our knowing."

"Or never left..." Rose said, musing over the possibilities.

"What do you mean?" Emmett asked. He placed his palm on the small of her back, guiding her to the right, and let it linger there for a moment before remembering Carlisle's speech.

"Did you actually see Kate leave?" Rose asked.

"Kate? Really? I mean, I didn't see her leave, but I don't think she's capable of murder either."

"I'm just throwing it out there. Considering everything, you know? You're right; it couldn't have been any of us. We have to take every possibility into account."

Emmett nodded and unclipped the radio from his pants to let Jasper know their location. They were in the basement now, nearing the generator. Dark shadows taunted them along the cement walls, flickering and waving back and forth with the flame of the candle.

"I guess you're right, which means we're back to square one," Emmett replied after talking to Jasper. He mused over her allegations. Emmett grabbed the keys from his pocket to open the door to the generator room, but there was no need; a crowbar lay on the floor in front of the door.

"The padlock," Rose said, gesturing to broken lock hanging from a hinge.

She moved past Emmett and into the room. It was empty, but Rose could see where the murderer had destroyed the generator. "There's no way I can fix this." She sighed and shook her head, looking at the copper wiring. "Someone did a good job of disabling it."

"Emmett to Jasper," Emmett called over the radio.

"Go ahead." Jaspers voice crackled back.

"The generator's been tampered with and Rose can't fix it. I think it's safe to assume that whoever our murderer is also cut the wires." Emmett and Rose were now making their way out of the generator room back to the main floor.

They heard Jasper's sigh over the radio. "Why don't you meet Alice and me at the stairwell then? There's something I want to show you."

"10-4," Emmett replied.

When they finally got to the stairwell, Jasper and Alice were standing outside the door, neither of them speaking, just staring into each other's eyes with looks of concern. When they heard Emmett and Rose approach, their heads turned simultaneously.

"That bad?" Emmett asked.

"That weird," Alice responded. Emmett tucked his little sister under his arm and gave her a hug.

"What is it?" Rose asked Jasper.

"Jessica was stabbed before she fell down the stairs," Jasper responded.

"Stabbed? I didn't see anything earlier," Emmett said.

"That's because you didn't turn her over. When you saw her, she was on her stomach, right?" Jasper opened the door and led them down the stairs to where Rose could see what definitely resembled a horrific crime scene down below. There was a massive amount of blood along the bottom steps and the walls, but mostly the floor surrounding a broken bundle that resembled nothing like a human. "It's not exactly the fact that she was stabbed that's strange, it's where and what she was stabbed _with_." Jasper continued.

He stopped them all a few steps before the blood started. From their perch a few feet up, they could see a silver fork sticking out of her chest.


	9. Suspects and Straightjackets

**Ch 9 – Suspects and Straightjackets**

Rose stood on the step looking down at the pale cold body. It wasn't Jessica anymore and hadn't been for hours. Before, Jessica's death had felt abstract, but now it was all too tangible. Rose's heart beat an erratic rhythm in her chest as she searched herself for the control she needed to stand there without becoming an emotional wreck.

She couldn't help but think back to two years ago when she had been responsible for identifying her parents' bodies. Even as she stood there, staring down at the bloody mess, images of a stark white morgue flashed into her mind. She could see her mother lying on a metal slab with a blanket folded back to reveal a face that was once so full of life. She could see her father's pale skin beginning to turn a light periwinkle blue. To this day she couldn't stand that color.

Rose spun away from Jessica and away from her memories. Alice, who stood behind Rose, realized too late what this must have reminded her friend of. The stairs gave Alice's short frame the height she needed to wrap an arm around Rose's shoulders.

"We're going to wait outside," she said to Jasper. He glanced back briefly and nodded his head in understanding.

Alice grasped Rose's hand in hers as she led her back up the staircase into the empty dark hallway.

"Are you alright?" Alice asked once they were alone.

"No." Rose shook her head. "Two innocent girls are dead, one girl is unconscious, and we still haven't found the killer. No, I am most certainly _not_ alright." Rose began pacing, trying to focus on something other than the image of Jessica that was now engrained in her memory. She was reviewing the sparse clues they had collected when Emmett and Jasper emerged from the stairwell.

"I just don't understand where the fork came from," Jasper was saying. "Or the chopstick for that matter. It seems a little odd, don't you think? I mean, we only have plastic utensils here, and even then it's all sporks."

Emmett nodded his head but was watching Rose as she continued to pace. She looked like an irritated lioness about to take something out. Instead of a twitching tail, however, her nostrils flared out and she was taking deep, agitated breaths.

Jasper droned on in the background, but only Alice cared enough to pay attention. Without thinking, Emmett reached out and placed his hand on Rose's small shoulder, stopping her in her tracks. Her head flicked up, and their gazes locked together. Her violet eyes were full of fire. As much as Emmett wanted to draw Rose into his chest to hug all of her stress away, he didn't move any closer to her. It occurred to Rose that Emmett seemed to understand her more than she had ever given him credit for.

Jasper continued. "It just doesn't seem likely that someone would come prepared for murder with a fork and a chopstick."

Emmett snapped his head up but left his hand on Rose's shoulder. He turned to look at Jasper. "Ben brought a picnic basket for Rose and the jackass," he said.

Jasper looked at him with a raised eye brow. "What's a picnic basket got to do with anything?"

Emmett rolled his eyes. "Don't look at me like I'm Yogi Bear. What do people usually pack in picnic baskets _besides_ food…?" He looked at Jasper pointedly, willing him to come to the conclusion he had already reached.

Jasper's eyes finally lit up in understanding. "You're right." he said thoughtgfully.

Back in the common room Ben was sitting just inside the door, warily keeping an eye on Mike who was still guarding Angela's room. At the sound of Emmett's footsteps, he stood up.

"Where's your picnic basket, Ben?" Emmett asked, , ,sounding merely curious.

Ben looked at Emmett with confusion but pointed to the sofa. "It's on the side there," he said. "But I don't think any of the food will taste very good without being warmed up."

Emmett walked swiftly over to pick up the basket and set it on the nearest table, quickly picking it all apart.

"What are you doing?" Ben asked, leaving his self-appointed post by the door.

Emmett didn't answer, just continued pulling out small Tupperware containers of food. Finally, he emerged with two spoons, two knifes, three individual chopsticks and a single fork. "Where are the other fork and chopstick?" Emmett asked. His smile was victorious and accusing all at once.

"I don't know," Ben responded, not understanding what was going on. "There was a full set of silverware in there when I packed it this morning." He began digging through the food while Rose, Jasper, and Alice entered the room.

Jasper walked over to stand beside Emmett and in front of Ben. "Why the chopsticks?" he asked.

Ben looked back and forth between Emmett and Jasper incredulously. "Because I made Thai food. Royce said it was Rose's favorite."

Emmett popped open a couple of the containers to make sure the caterer was telling the truth. The smell of peanut sauce wafted around them.

"What time did you get here this morning?" Jasper asked.

"Am I being interrogated? You don't think I'm the killer, do you?" Ben asked, looking slightly hurt.

"All we know, _Ben_…if that's even your real name," Emmett started, "is that someone's killed two girls. One of them with a fork that looks _just_ like this one, and the other with a chopstick that looks _just_ like these." Emmett held the utensils up and cocked his head with raised eyebrows, fully expecting a confession then and there.

"What? No!" Ben practically yelled. "I didn't…I couldn't…I wouldn't ever…" he stumbled over his words.

Emmett reached over and clenched the front of Ben's shirt in his hands. "Don't lie to me, Ben," he said dangerously.

Ben's hands were wrapped around Emmett's arms. "I'm not! I didn't hurt anyone! I swear. I like Angela. Why would I want to hurt her?" he asked. His eyes were wide with fright.

"That's enough, Emmett." Jasper said. Emmett looked over at him with a sigh but let Ben's feet drop to the floor. Ben took a step back from Emmett's towering frame but couldn't move far since Rose and Alice were standing behind him.

"I swear to God," he said. "I _didn't_ hurt her, and I _didn't_ kill anyone."

"Maybe the reason you left Angela alive is because you like her," Emmett said, trying to read further into Ben's expression.

"No. Absolutely not. I did not do it."

"You had ample time to run to the girl's bathroom after you ran back here to get the candle," Emmett suggested. "How do we know you didn't run off to take care of Nessie and Angela before meeting Laurent and me back in the kitchen?"

"No way. I…there wasn't…there couldn't have been enough time!" Ben spun to look back at Alice and Rose who stood behind him, both with their arms crossed against their chests and looking at him stoically. "Tell him," he begged. "I ran back in here and then ran right out the way I came."

Alice shrugged her shoulders. "We didn't see which way you went when you left," she said. "How long did it take him to get back to you?" she asked Emmett.

"Long enough to have stabbed Nessie with a chopstick and knock Angela out," he answered.

"No!" Ben exclaimed. "Maybe someone stole the…the…the weapons from the basket. I left it on the counter when I got here because I left the candelabra in my car. Maybe it was that other nurse, the one who left. The blonde one?"

"Excuses, excuses," Emmett said, shaking his head. "Don't try to point the finger at someone else."

"I think for safety's sake, Ben, you should let us put you in a straightjacket," Jasper said.

Ben shook his head. "Please, you have to believe me! I didn't do it!"

"You're the owner of both of the murder weapons, Ben. How can you expect us to believe you had nothing to do with this?" Jasper asked.

"Just cooperate, Ben," Alice said. "The cops will figure out what happened when they get here. If you're innocent, you have nothing to worry about. The more you fight, though, the worse this looks for you."

Ben sighed heavily and nodded his head.

***

Outside the hospital, the storm still didn't reveal any sign of letting up. It seemed to Rose that the clouds were actually darker than ever. Unfortunately, the candles Ben had provided were nearly out. As it was, the light in the room was hardly more than a sputtering flicker. She glanced down at the watch on her wrist; it was nearly 9:00 pm and they were still stuck inside.

Rose was grateful that at least no one else had been attacked in the past couple hours. She could only hope that it was because Ben was the killer. He sat in the corner opposite from James, fitted into a straightjacket.

Jasper and Emmett had brought sleeping pads into the common room so that everyone could stay together comfortably. Eric and Mike were on the first watch; Mike was still in front of Angela's room and Eric was stationed at the entrance to the common room. Jasper, Alice, and Emmett were trying to get the patients settled for the night.

Billy was arguing with Jasper, insisting on sleeping in his wheel chair since his dream catcher was currently attached to the back of it. Alice was saying goodnight to Esme and Carlisle, ,who lay away from the group in the space they had occupied all day. They were on separate mats, but both were curled up on their sides facing each other.

Jasper and Alice had set up their mats next to each other near the entrance to provide backup to Eric in case he needed it. Emmett's lay next to the one Bella currently occupied and would be sharing with Rose.

As Rose made her way over to Bella, Royce popped back out of the shadows and grabbed her arm. "You can always share my mat." He smiled sleazily at Rose with a suggestive eyebrow raise.

"Jesus, you're like a jackass-in-a-box that won't go away." She removed her arm from his grasp. "Go lay down, Royce," she said with a sigh.

"Come on. You know you can't sleep without your spoon." He reached out again, running his hand softly up her arm.

"Royce," she said more sternly. "I'm warning you. Go. Lie. Down."

"But I didn't get a goodnight kiss, Rosie," he whined.

Rose didn't dignify his unnecessary crudeness with an answer and began to walk away. Before she had even taken a step, however, she felt a hand smack her bottom. "Nighty night," Royce said in a sing song voice. "I'll be dreaming about you."

Rose clenched her jaws. With everything that had been piled on her throughout the terrible day and all of the emotions she had kept masked trying to be strong for the patients and for Bella, Royce had just put an anvil on the back of a camel who would have collapsed with the addition of a single straw. "Maybe you should go dream about fucking yourself," she said as she spun around. Without even pausing, she threw a carefully aimed right hook and he crumpled to the ground. Rose gracefully stepped over him and walked away, taking her place on the mat next to Bella.

Emmett, who had been across the room dealing with Lauren, looked up in time to see Rose's fist connect with Royce's jaw. Jasper looked back and forth between Rose, Emmett, and Alice, his jaw hanging open in surprise. Alice and Emmett both wore matching smirks, proud and happy that Royce had finally gotten what was coming to him.

"Sweet dreams," Rose grumbled as she lay down next to Bella and rubbed her knuckles.

After everyone was finally settled, the room began to quiet down and Emmett, Jasper, and Alice were able to relax on their mats. In the background, the heavy breaths of sleep echoed around the room.

Rose stared up at the ceiling and counted tiles since every time she closed her eyes one gruesome scene after another flashed on her lids. It was like a private horror show. She tried to imagine happy things like ponies and rainbows and unicorns, but it wasn't doing any good.

Instead, she let her mind drift to the people around her. It was interesting watching Alice and Jasper's relationship develop even during the awful sequence of events they'd all gone through. Then again, sometimes surviving horrible moments in life is what bond people together forever.

Rose found herself focusing on the steady rhythm of Emmett's breathing. It was obvious that she was going to have to figure out where the two of them stood as soon when they all got out of this mess. It seemed like their awkward morning together had been so long ago. And if she didn't still feel the light throb of bruising on her neck, she'd probably be able to convince herself that what happened in the storage closet was only her imagination.

As it was, she couldn't deny the fact that Emmett managed to both set her on and off balance with the slightest touch or the tiniest of glances. In the hallway, the simple placement of his hand on her shoulder made her feel safe. It made her feel like everything would work itself out. On the flip side, she remembered very clearly his hand running down her arms that morning as she stood in his house wrapped only in the towel. It sent fire through her veins that, even thinking about, threatened to make a repeat performance.

Rose was still wrapped deeply in thought when her sister rolled over to face her. "How's your hand?" a pensive voice asked.

Rose's flipped her head to the side to look next to her. "Edward?"

Edward nodded his head, his deep brown eyes brooding.

"It's fine," Rose said quietly. "I thought…Bella said you were gone."

He nodded his head minutely. "How is she?" he asked.

"Not good," Rose admitted. "But she just needs time. Are you really leaving?"

"It's for her own good," he sighed, but the pain in his eyes was heart wrenching. "Bella deserves a normal life. She deserves a husband, children…" he trailed off. "She deserves everything."

Rose nodded her head, surprised at the overwhelming sadness she felt for Edward. She understood that Edward was just another part of Bella – a part that didn't and shouldn't exist – but she couldn't help but feel the sorrow of potentially loosing him. At the same time, she couldn't disagree; she, too, wanted those things for Bella.

"I only came back to warn you," he said.

"Warn me? About what?"

"There's a murderer on the loose." The graveness of Edward's expression would typically have looked absurd with Bella's soft features, but this time, Rose's heart stilled in her chest.

"Good work, Sherlock. Tell me something I don't know," Rose said, covering her concern with sarcasm. "Nessie and Jessica are both dead, and Angela's unconscious. We're pretty sure Ben did it and we've…" Edward shook his head, making Rose pause. "What? Why are you shaking your head?"

"It's not Ben. I know who it is."

"Well then tell me who it is, genius!" Rose hissed.

"S--," Edward started, but was cut off by the sound of metal clattering loudly to the floor outside the room.

Rose and Edward sat up simultaneously and found that Emmett and Jasper had already jumped to their feet to run into the hallway. The candle maintained a slight glow, ,and it cast long dancing shadows across the room. It only provided enough light to see an inch or so out the front door. Rose leapt to her feet as well, letting Alice grab her hand to follow Emmett and Jasper.

"Stay here," Rose called back to Edward.

Emmett and Jasper stood at the entrance to Angela's room. Outside the door, Mike was sprawled on the floor with a bedpan lying beside his head. Inside the room, Angela's bed was empty.

Jasper leaned down to check Mike's pulse while Emmett inspected the room for any sign of the person who had knocked Mike unconscious.

Satisfied that he was alive and more or less okay, Jasper began shaking his shoulder. "Mike. Wake up." He shook the orderly's shoulder again. "Mike!" he said a little louder.

Mike's eyes began to flutter open and closed. "Wha…Ooohh," he groaned. "Wha happnn…" Mike raised his hand to his head, pulling quickly away when he felt blood.

Emmett emerged from the room. "That's what we'd like to know," he said, reaching down to pull Mike up and put him in the chair.

"I don't…remember," Mike said groggily. "I was just sitting here and the next thing I know, someone hit me." Mike's head lolled back. "Oh, God, it hurts."

"We need to find Angela. Whoever the killer is has obviously come back to finish the job," Jasper said, glancing down the hall.

"How in the hell did the person get away so fast?" Emmett asked mostly to himself.

"Edward!" Rose cried out. Jasper, Emmett, and Alice looked at her in surprise.

"What's Edward got to do with anything?" Emmett asked.

"Edward was about to tell me who did it."

"I thought that Edward was gone," Alice said.

"Apparently not. Not yet, at least." Rose ran back into the common room, but when she got there, Edward wasn't on the mat. Her eyes scanned over the room and she couldn't seem to find him, or her sister, anywhere. "Edward?" she called out.

Something caught Rose's attention. Billy was in his wheelchair sitting by a window with white fabric clasped in his hand. Rose rapidly crossed the room to get a better look as the candle was giving its last sparks of life. In Billy's lap was a white straightjacket. Her head turned to see Ben, exactly where he was when they left the room. But in the opposite corner, the corner where James should have been, there was an empty chair.

"Bella," Rose gasped. And with that, the candle went out, casting the room into darkness yet again.

* * *

**End a/n:** Can you feel the end? There's probably about another chapter or two left as well as an epilogue. If you wouldn't mind, I'd LOVE to hear who you suspect as the murderer. Drop on over at Twilighted and let me know who you think it is before Ch 10


	10. Sporking Holy Water

**a/n: **This chapter is dedicated to the ever lovely Nae. This story is entirely and completely dedicated to SideKick55. It wouldn't be half as good as it is without her. (I guess that's assuming it's good. I'd say about 90% of the parts you like, are because of her though)

And speaking of who my story would suck without, my betas – crysross and SilentNC both make my story better. You'd be reading a lot more comma splices and punctuation errors if it weren't for them.

* * *

**Ch 10 – Sporking Holy Water**

Rose sprinted across the common room, miraculously avoiding people and furniture even in the pitch black. Her heart beat furiously inside her chest, threatening to break through any second. She had to get to Bella.

Behind her, Emmett and Alice called her name, beckoning her to wait for them, but the rain washed away the sound of their voices, leaving Rose alone. Always alone. In the dark, the halls all looked the same, and as she slowed down to throw open doors, she couldn't even distinguish which direction she ran in.

"Bella!" Rose called desperately. She stood still in the center of the hall, listening to the sounds of the hospital. She was vaguely aware of her name being repeated somewhere behind her, but it didn't matter. The only thing that mattered was finding her sister.

If Rose thought she couldn't have been more scared than she was when she had been trapped alone with James, she was sadly mistaken. With each frantic footstep, she vowed to find Bella, letting the mantra fill her head and her body so that even the sound of the rain faded away.

"God," she began to pray in a fervent whisper. "Please, I know we haven't always been on the best of terms...but..." She had to pause, choking back a sob. "Please, _not_ Bella. Please let me find her."

There was no answer, only the cadence of her heartbeat ringing in her ears. She had become accustomed to God's silence. When she had driven back to Forks from college after hearing the news of her parent's death, praying for it all to be some sick joke or horrid mistake, God was silent then too.

With each empty room, her cheeks grew all the more damp. She knew that the more time that passed, the less likely it would be that her sister was still alive. The echo of her calls to Bella multiplied behind her in various tones. Rose continued slamming doors open, barely pausing to look inside them.

Though her vision was blurred with tears, she continued relentlessly through the dark. As she approached the end of the hall, she picked up on the sound of thrashing water. God was finally answering her.

Rose paused to survey her surroundings and realized that she was probably close to the kitchen. She took off again, following the source of the sound that led her to two swinging double doors. As she drew nearer, she attempted to quiet her footsteps so as not to alert James of her presence. A flash of lightening lit up the windows and revealed dark shadows inside.

Without another thought, she slammed open the doors. Rose gasped in surprise. Nothing was as she expected. James lay on the ground in front of the large kitchen sink. His upper body was soaking wet, hair plastered wildly to his head. Next to him, she saw two sporks held together in the shape of a cross with a twist tie. The sink overflowed onto the tile, the faucet still running, creating a waterfall over the edge of the sink.

Rose's eyes followed a trail of water in the shape of footprints that led further back into the kitchen. In front of the large window, Angela was illuminated from behind by the frequent flashes of lightening. She held Bella in front of her like a shield, not unlike James had done with Rose earlier.

Rose's body tensed and she felt her muscles draw together, ready to spring at Angela to knock Bella loose. "Let go of my sister," Rose said with a feral growl.

"This isn't your sister," Angela replied softly, holding Bella still against her.

"I think I know my own sister," Rose replied, still tensed for a fight, though she was surprised at the grief in Angela's tone.

"She may have beenyour sister _once_, Rose, but she's not anymore. You have to come to terms with that. Let me help you." Sincerity rang through Angela's voice, but there was a look in her eyes that Rose hadn't noticed before.

Angela was bat-shit crazy.

"Fine – then just let her go. We can talk about it," she said.

Angela shook her head. "I can't do that."

"Why?"

"She's a vampire."

Rose came out of her crouch and her eyebrows furrowed together. "What?" she asked, thinking that bat-shit crazy may have been an understatement.

"You said so yourself, Rose. She's a vampire," Angela responded seriously.

"No, I said Edward _thought _he was a vampire. Key word being _thought_. " Rose had begun to pace slightly from side to side, slowly moving closer to Angela. "Did you kill Jessica and Nessie, too?"

Angela nodded her head gravely. "It's harder on me than you can imagine, but as a slayer, it's my job."

Rose paused mid-pace. "Job?" she asked, looking confounded.

"Into each generation a girl is born: one girl in all the world, a chosen one. She alone will wield the strength and skill to fight the vampires, demons, and the forces of darkness; to stop the spread of their evil and the swell of their numbers. She is the Slayer."

Rose's jaw dropped open. "Slayer? As in Buffy?"

Angela rolled her eyes. "Tell a person that you're the Slayer and they stare at you blankly. Mention something out of a Joss Whedon show and suddenly everybody is a vampirology scholar."

After a moment of silence, Rose spoke up again. "Alright, so say I believe that you are the slayer. And suppose that my sister _is_ a vampire. She's never hurt anyone. Why do you have to kill her?"

"She's dangerous, don't you understand?" Angela began to rant. "I mean, people are perfectly happy getting along, and then vampires come, and they run around and they kill people... With one drop of blood, this demon can go crazy and slaughter everyone in here. You all would be powerless to stop her, and if it weren't for me, you'd probably be dead already."

"And Jessica and Nessie. Were they vampires too?" Rose asked. She looked around her, trying to find something to help her get Bella out of Angela's grasp.

"Yes, they were."

"And James?" Rose figured if she could just keep Angela preoccupied with questions, it would buy them more time.

"He was the worst of them all."

Rose saw a meat cleaver on the counter and slowly began making her way over to it. "I still don't understand. Aren't slayers supposed to use wooden stakes or something? What's the deal with you forking Jessica?"

Angela shrugged. "Sometimes you have to make due with what you've got. I didn't actually plan for this to happen, but then James escaped, we were locked in, and everything fell into place. Ben having the chopstick and silverware was certainly fortuitous."

"And you killed James how...?"

"Holy water. I didn't have a cross, so I had to make one." Angela shrugged.

"And I'm sorry, but aren't vampires supposed to...I don't know...burst into flames, or dust, or something?"

"You've been watching too many horror movies," Angela said.

"Apparently I'm not the only one," Rose muttered under her breath. Her back was to the counter now and she crawled her fingers across the slick surface, gently feeling for the meat cleaver. She was tired of wasting time and was more than ready to have Bella safely away from Angela's psychotic clutches.

"I hate to break up your great reveal." Edward's voice coming from Bella was a surprise to Angela and she nearly let go. "But frankly, this position isn't exactly the most comfortable and it's constricting my blood flow. Would you mind terribly giving me a little room to breathe?" he asked politely. Rose couldn't help but roll her eyes at Edward's need to be the consummate gentleman.

"Vampires don't breathe." Angela pulled tighter and Edward's face began to turn pink. Then, faster than Rose thought Edward would be capable of in his position, he maneuvered his head down just enough to sink his teeth into Angela's forearm.

With a great shriek, Angela released him and he stumbled away towards Rose.

Angela dropped to the floor, writhing in pain. "Ugh," she groaned dramatically. Even from a few feet away and through the dark, Rose could see that Edward had hardly drawn any blood. "Ugh, the venom," she continued in a whine.

Rose hugged Edward, sure that Angela wasn't going to be going anywhere anytime soon, and asked, "Venom?"

Edward shrugged and smiled lopsidedly at Rose. "I think it was in one of those lame teenage vampire movies where they screw up all the vampire lore."

Outside the door, Rose heard the steady rhythm of quickly approaching footsteps. Seconds later, Emmett crashed through the doors and slid to a stop. "Are you okay?" he asked, wrapping his arms like a vice around both Edward and Rose.

"Do you mind?" Edward said, but his voice was muffled by Emmett's chest.

"We're fine. It was Angela the whole time." Rose shook her head. "She thinks that she's a vampire slayer."

Emmett raised an eye brow and released them from the hug.

"I know," Rose said. "She's a bad vampire slayer, too. I mean, I get the chopstick to the heart, being wood and all, but silverware? I thought silver was a werewolf thing."

"Why is she on the floor? And why do you know so much about what kills vampires?" Emmett looked at Rose with interest.

"Oh, don't give me that look," Rose said. "When your sister thinks she's a veggie vamp named Edward, you do a little research. And Edward bit her arm. I'm guessing she thinks she's turning into a vampire."

Emmett smiled, and for the first time in several hours, his dimples reappeared. "You...are a beautiful nerd," he said, and then gathered her into another hug.

***

Jasper and Emmett had carried the still-thrashing Angela back to the common room and put her inside the straightjacket that had initially been used for James. They sat on either side of her, neither willing to risk Angela getting free again.

Bella and Rose sat on the sofa next to each other, Rose gently stroking Bella's hair. She couldn't remember ever being so tired, and she had to fight against the gravity that pulled insistently at her eyelids. It was in the middle of this battle that Edward returned, but this time, Bella remained as well.

Rose's head had begun to droop on her chest when she heard Bella's quiet exclamation. "Edward!" she whispered reverently, , ,and her voice was full of joy that Rose hadn't heard in more than two years.

Rose instinctually kept up the pretense that she had fallen asleep, letting Bella have this moment alone with Edward. If he really was leaving, Bella would need this goodbye.

"Bella," came Edward's voice. He said her name like a prayer to a worshipped goddess. "I'm leaving."

Bella stilled in Rose's arms. "Why now?"

"Bella, it's time," he said despondently.

"Please...please don't leave me...I can't...I just can't take it." Bella had to pause intermittently between quiet sobs. Rose felt the warm tears trickle down her arm that was draped over Bella's chest.

"Bella. My love. I can't stay like this," Edward responded with agony. "_You_ can't stay like this. You have to move forward with your life. There's so much out there for you beyond these hospital walls."

"I don't want any of it," Bella replied, her light voice obstinate and infuriated that Edward would suggest such a thing. "Without you, Edward, it's meaningless. Without you, it's dull and gray and pointless. I can't exist without you. Don't you understand?"

Edward shook his head. "You haven't tried. You _have_ to try. You have to live your life or everything I am to you will disappear. I promise you, Bella, we'll be together again. Just...not like this. This...what we are...is wrong. It's unhealthy. You need to move forward with your life, my love. Move forward and carry me in your heart, because I'll live there forever. And with every step you take, I'll be there with you."

Bella began to shake against Rose; her sobs racking her body and tearing her apart from the inside out. Rose hadn't ever been witness to the intimacy of the conversation between Edward and Bella. Mostly, Bella and Edward saved moments like these for when they were alone. Now, witnessing it first hand, Rose felt she was getting a better understanding of their feelings for each other. Part of her wanted to plead for Edward to stay on Bella's behalf.

After a few moments, Edward responded in a clear voice, interrupting Bella's jagged breathing. "Live. That's the greatest gift you can give me. You won't be alone forever. I promise you that. Do you trust me?" he asked.

"I love you," Bella responded as an answer.

"Then trust me." Rose felt a hand reach up to brush Bella's hair away from her face and she knew it was Edward. "Trust me. Do this for yourself, for me, for Rose."

Bella's body collapsed against Rose, and she knew Edward was gone. She wrapped her arms around Bella, holding her tight against her body. Bella was falling apart and Rose had to hold the pieces together.

***

Over the course of the next few hours, the storm finally subsided. When Rose awoke, her shirt was still wet with tears from Bella as well as tears she had shed herself _for_ Bella. The sun was peaking in through the window, victorious and bright. Rose shifted Bella slightly to move away from her and went to bask in its warmth.

As she stood there, someone walked up behind her. She didn't have to turn around to know it was Emmett.

"The electricity's back on and Jasper's already called the police," he said. "They should be up here in the next hour. Apparently the roads are pretty rough."

Rose nodded her head, emotionally and physically exhausted. She wanted nothing more than a warm bath and a soft bed.

"How's Bella?" Emmett asked. He was standing next to her now, also looking out the window and appreciating the warmth and the glow of the sun. His hand was rubbing soothing circles on Rose's back.

"Not good. But she will be, I think." Rose replied. She leaned into Emmett's side, letting his large frame support her.

He draped his arm across her shoulder and held her to him tightly. "Yes, she will be."

* * *

**End a/n:** One more chapter and then an epilogue. I'm excited and a teensy bit sad.

And while we're all here, I'd like to do some self-pimpage. I'm working on a new story called Catalyst. I've posted the prologue up for you to take a look at. Updates to it may be a little slow to begin with, since I need to finish this little baby up first.


	11. Soaring

**a/n: **After you're done reading this, I want you to go and thank every writer who's written a love scene that makes you melt, because that ish is hard work! Speaking of which, if you're under 18 you really shouldn't read past the second set of asterisks. In all honesty, you don't miss much after that.

Read on my little love muffins. I'll say some thanks at the end.

* * *

**Ch 11 – Soaring**

_Dedicated to BabySis_

**Song:** Diamond Shovel by Ramona Falls (go find it on iTunes – it's really pretty)

Just as Emmett had said, the Forks Police Department showed up about an hour later. Officers Kachiri and Zafrina took the statements of the people involved and began taping off the crime scenes.

"We'll get the tape down as soon as possible," Officer Kachiri told Jasper as Officer Zafrina dragged a screaming Angela to the police cruiser parked out front.

"Oh God! The sun! Am I sparkling? I'm sparkling, aren't I? Oh the injustice!" Angela's screams echoed back to the hospital. She was still under the impression that she was turning into a vampire.

Officer Kachiri continued on: only the elevated tone of her voice indicating she heard Angela at all. "We'll need to keep in contact while we investigate. Take my card and call me if you think of anything else. I know you're all tired. Feel free to head home, but I'd prefer that none of you leave the city until the investigation is complete."

Jasper nodded his head. "That shouldn't be a problem."

Kate walked into the hospital, her head turning to take in the police officer, caution tape and haggard state of the staff.

"I'm sorry I couldn't come in last night," she said to Jasper, still looking around. "But…what the hell happened here?"

Jasper shook his head. "It's a long story."

"Angela thought she was a vampire slayer and decided to use the storm as an opportunity to kill off everyone she thought was a vampire," Emmett said, walking up behind Jasper with Rose and Alice. They had just gotten Bella settled in her room.

"Or not…" Jasper said with a sigh.

Kate's eyes were wide with surprise. "But…she seemed so nice. And I'm sorry, did you say she killed someone?"

"Technically three someones," Emmett responded. "Jessica and Nessie, and then James, the new patient."

Kate's jaw dropped and tears began to well up in her eyes. "Oh no…but…Nessie…she was just so young."

The group nodded their heads in unison, knowing exactly how Kate was feeling.

"Kate, if you wouldn't mind holding down the fort, we'd appreciate it. We've already got the patients into their rooms, and after last night's excitement, I imagine they'll pretty much sleep the day away," Jasper said, reaching behind him to grab Alice's hand. "I think we're all going to head home now. Try to rest up. Someone will be in to relieve you tonight."

Kate nodded her head, still in a daze.

"Call if you need anything." Jasper patted Kate on the shoulder and headed out the front door of the hospital, still holding Alice's hand. Emmett and Rose followed behind.

They all shielded their eyes against the bright sun but refused to look away, relishing the natural lighting.

"If you don't mind, Emmett, I'm going to take Alice home with me. I'm not inclined to let her out of my sight just yet," Jasper said, looking down at Alice warmly.

"He doesn't mind." Alice smiled and let Jasper drag her to his car.

***

Rose relaxed in the bathtub, letting her fingers shrivel as she tried to push back the images from the past 24 hours. She felt equal parts guilty and relieved that she couldn't cry. She simply didn't have the strength. Her heart did hurt, though; it felt as if it had been involved in a knock down, drag out fight.

Probably the worst part of the night was being witness to Edward's goodbye to Bella. Alice told Rose not to get her hopes up, but there was so much finality to his tone that Rose found it difficult _not_ to believe him. Bella had gone nearly catatonic afterwards. She would hardly speak to Rose and was entirely silent around everyone else.

It was impossible for her to feel even slightly relieved at Edward's departure when she saw how much it hurt Bella. Part of her even resented him for it, try as she might to look on the bright side.

When the water finally started to cool around her, she got out and toweled off. She slipped Emmett's borrowed shirt over her head and tiptoed across the hallway to her room. Rose couldn't help but glance in the direction of Emmett's room. It was quiet, but there was a sliver of light shining beneath the door.

Rose took her time getting into bed. She puttered about, unpacking her suitcases and braiding her hair so that it wouldn't be a disaster in the morning. She drew the curtain over the windows and threw an extra blanket up, attempting to block the light from the sun. Eventually, when she ran out of things to do, she climbed into the tall bed and turned off the light.

As she lay there in the dark, her mind began to work overtime. Thoughts of Angela spun through her mind. She tried to look for clues that she had missed. Things that might have showed her that Angela was the killer and ways she might have prevented the deaths of Nessie and Jessica, but there was nothing. Angela had really just seemed like an all around nice person.

Shortly after she closed her eyes, she began to drift off, but flickers of Jessica's body and James's hands on her throat kept her from falling asleep. The bed was too large around her, and the house Alice and Emmett lived in was old and frequently made noises that, before, she could have easily ignored. But now, alone in bed and trying to avoid the frightening thoughts that filled her mind, it was impossible to do.

Each thump was James about to walk through the door. Small _tinks_ of the pipes had her curling into a fetal position, preparing for Angela to walk through the door with a whisk or some other kitchen utensil. It was just too much.

Rose leapt out of bed and threw the light on. She paced around the room, trying to figure out what to do. Short of being knocked out, there was no way she was sleeping without nightmares.

She wrung the hem of the large shirt around her hands and dropped her head to her chest to breathe in the lingering scent of Emmett's cologne. It immediately set her more at ease, and she knew what she had to do.

Quietly, she opened the door and peeked her head out of the room, listening for sounds that indicated whether or not Emmett was asleep. When she didn't hear anything, she padded lightly down the hall to see if the light was still on under the door. It was.

Rose continued to pace outside his door for several seconds, debating whether or not she should go in. She wanted to. She needed to. But she didn't want him to get the wrong impression.

Finally, she decided that sleep was more important than anything else, especially if she was going to have to go back to the hospital anytime soon. She knocked lightly on the door and opened it at the same time, peeking her head into his room.

Emmett was lying in bed. The lamp on the nightstand was giving him just enough light to read, as he had also covered his windows with blankets. He looked up at Rose and smiled. "Can't sleep either?" he asked, setting the book down on his lap.

Rose shook her head and walked into the room. She stood at the foot of his bed, trailing her fingers across the footboard. "I keep seeing Jessica," she admitted quietly.

Emmett nodded his head. "I keep going back between Jessica, Nessie and…" He took a deep breath. "And James. Seeing him…and you…in the closet."

Rose nodded her head. She moved to the side of the bed and sat carefully on it, her back to Emmett. "Do you think we'll ever stop seeing it?" she asked solemnly.

"I don't know," he said with a sigh.

Rose felt the bed jostle underneath her and saw Emmett's feet approach her. He stood beside her, hesitant to reach out.

"Would you maybe…" he began. She looked up at Emmett and saw his hand rubbing the back of his neck. "Would you want to sleep…in here?" he asked. "Just sleep. Nothing else. But it might…I don't know…help? Maybe?"

Rose didn't say anything for a moment, just looked up into his eyes.

"I'm sorry. That was a stupid idea," Emmett said and then moved to walk away.

Rose reached out and grabbed his hand. "Alright."

Emmett's eyes lit up, but he didn't smile. "Alright," he repeated and walked to the other side of the bed to pull down the covers for her.

Once Rose was tucked in, he got back into bed on his side and turned out the lamp. "Sleep well," he said.

Rose responded by reaching out for his hand in the dark and holding onto it with her own.

Sometimes, in the dark, you find truth. She had drawn this imaginary line between herself and Emmett. And now, lying next to him with his hand surrounding hers, she wasn't sure it existed anymore. And in truth, she wasn't sure it ever had.

***

Rose woke up more rested than she thought possible and lay in bed pulling her thoughts out of the murky morning haze. Yesterday felt like an awful dream, but the slight throbbing in her throat was proof that it was more than a nightmare. She tried to remember exactly where she was without opening her eyes. It was warm. Very warm. And as she attempted to stretch out her sore limbs, she realized that whatever she was lying on was most certainly not a mattress.

Her eyes flickered open, and as she looked around, she remembered. The sun had long since gone into hiding, casting everything in dark shadows, but it was unmistakably Emmett's room. He was everywhere: in the clothes strewn haphazardly on the floor, in the sports trophies lining his book shelf, but most notably, he was beneath Rose. Literally.

Somehow, over the course of the night, she had found her way to Emmett's chest and now lay on top of him, curled up like a kitten. He had his arms wrapped around her in a snug cocoon that restricted her movements entirely. To add to this already inappropriate situation, the t-shirt she was wearing had risen during the course of the night. The tactile sensation of his naked chest beneath Rose's bare stomach sent her heart on a sprint.

Even though her fingers begged to explore the man beneath her, Rose kept them clenched in fists against her body. She did, however, allow herself to bask in his warmth for a few moments until he shifted slightly, reminding her of the less than platonic nature of their position. Something long and quite hard was pressing into her thigh through his pajama bottoms. He shifted again and her breath hitched in her chest. Images of all the things she had imagined doing to him..._with_ him...over the past few months flashed before her eyes, and suddenly the heat she was feeling was coming from within.

Rose wanted to stay there, rubbing herself up against his body, but wasn't entirely sure she was ready. Considering everything they had been through, she needed to be positive that her feelings for him were legitimate and not just the product of a need for consolation. There was just too much to lose by rushing in. And lying there breathing in his overtly masculine scent wasn't exactly going to provide her with an unbiased resolution.

She shifted slightly on top of him, trying to lift one of his massive arms off. Before Rose had made much progress, Emmett tightened his arms around her, pulling her deeper into his chest. "Good morning beautiful," he greeted. His deep voice made gruff by sleep rumbled through his body and into hers, creating the most inappropriately delicious vibration. It occurred to Rose that she could hear that greeting every morning for the rest of her life and never tire of it.

_Get it together. Now is _not_ the time, _she told herself, but responded, "Morning," and made a second attempt at breaking free now that he was awake. His arms tightened even more, binding her arms between their bodies. "Do you mind?" she asked wriggling around.

This close to him, not only did Rose feel the deep gasp of breath he took, but also the twitch of his...she couldn't even bring herself to say it in her head. She had to stifle a moan that nearly escaped her throat, revealing just how much she'd rather stay in bed.

"I don't mind at all." He kept one arm tight around her shoulders, leaving his other hand free to roam around her exposed skin. His large hands were deceptively delicate as they grazed gently across her back. To say it left a wake of goose bumps in its path would have been a terrible understatement. It was like her skin flared to life beneath his touch; her breath and the beat of her heart were erratic and staggered; her face froze in a mixture of fear and elation.

Rose knew she had to do something before things proceeded to the next level. She couldn't risk Alice's friendship. And more than that, she couldn't risk hurting Emmett. She needed an element of surprise, because her strength alone was going to get her nowhere.

As Emmett continued working his hands across her back, getting more and more adventurous as each second passed, Rose managed to get her arms positioned where she could easily push herself forward. She had a strategy. And that strategy could and _would_ probably backfire, but she went for it anyway.

Without wasting another second, she pushed herself forward roughly in his arms, sliding quickly up to his face and colliding with his lips. Rose nearly abandoned her plan of escape as he growled into her mouth, but when her plan worked and he loosened his arms in surprise, she broke free, gasping for breath.

Rose flew back to the corner of his bed, nearly falling onto the hard floor. A slow smirk spread across his face and his eyebrow rose in amusement, but his eyes revealed that he wouldn't let her get away so easily.

"Shower," she managed to say as she nearly flung herself out of the room and into the hallway. She had given up trying to maintain any sort of composure around him.

Emmett looked out the door after her as if she had left a visible trail.

Rose sought refuge in the bathroom and locked the door before sliding against the wall to the ground. Her heart battered against her chest, attempting to break free of its cage. If that were even possible, she knew exactly where it would flee. It would go down the hall to the room every cell in her body was pleading with her to return to. She took a deep breath, fighting the urge to unlock the door, and decided that what she needed was a nice, long, _cold_ shower.

These cold showers were going to get old fast.

She quickly undressed, avoiding looking at herself in the mirror. She didn't need to see the bruises to remind her of last night.

Of the two primary thoughts in Rose's mind, she much preferred to tackle Emmett – probably more literally than figuratively – but even that was dangerous.

When she jumped under the icy spray, cursing the Pacific Northwest for its naturally freezing cold water, she wrapped her arms around herself and attempted to focus rationally on how best to handle the Emmett situation. Unfortunately, even with the ungodly temperature of the water, she could still feel his hands on her back, rendering the shower useless. Rose continued standing there anyway, trying to push back any visions of him, but they assaulted her imagination like a petulant child throwing a tantrum.

Once she managed to find some focus, the torrent of water cascading down her back seemed to be slowly eroding the mountain of justifications she had built as to why she and Emmett shouldn't be together. They washed away down the drain, leaving her standing precariously on the ledge of her only remaining reason. And that reason was flimsy at best.

Time.

It had only been 48 hours since Rose had officially ended things with Royce. Was it too soon to jump into a relationship? If it was too soon, did she even care? That emotional ledge was quite possibly the most frightening place she had ever been –the last 24 hours included.

Rose had been standing under the showerhead for some time, mulling over her thoughts. When a loud bang rattled the bathroom door, she nearly jumped out of her skin.

"Jesus Christ," she breathed to herself, bracing her hands on either side of the shower head.

Two seconds later, she heard the door open and footsteps walk into the bathroom.

"I told you I would come in here if you took too long." Emmett's voice was full of humor as he reminded her of the threat he made her first night there.

"How in the hell did you get in? I locked the door."

"Please. Like a locked door could stop me," he said with a chuckle.

"I'll be out in a second. Then it'll be all yours."

"That's fine. I think I'll wait right here." She could hear those devious dimples from behind the shower curtain.

Rose took the chance to peek her head out and saw him leaning against the bathroom counter, holding a towel in his hand.

"You know, I thought there would be a lot more steam in here. That's why I came in – I wanted to make sure there was enough hot water," he said thoughtfully. "Now why would you need to take a cold shower?" Emmett glanced in her direction with a knowing smirk.

Rose closed the shower curtain and bit her lip."It helps wake me up?" she responded, but it sounded more like a question.

"I take cold showers too sometimes, but usually for different reasons" he said.

"Felt like you could use one this morning," she grumbled to herself, slightly annoyed, slightly amused, and maybe wishing a little that he would just get in and join her.

"Is that an invitation?"

He had heard her.

"It most certainly is not," she said sternly. If her body was capable of acting of its own accord, she was sure she would be kicking herself. "If you set one foot in here..." Rose couldn't think of an appropriate threat as her imagination took off on a tangent of various scenes with Emmett and her together in the shower.

"Don't worry. For some reason, I always envision our first shower together as a hot one." He let the double entendre hang in the air. Rose was thankful that he couldn't see her knees almost give out beneath her.

She reached down and turned off the water. Being naked with him within arm's reach was just too much for her to handle. "If you'll hand me the towel, the shower's all yours," she said, sticking her hand out of the curtain.

"Hmmmm..."

"What are you hmmming about?" She jutted her hand out again, waiting to make contact with the fabric.

"I'm just wondering what I'll get in return for being your cabana boy and fetching your towel."

"My thanks," she replied shortly. "And a kick in the shin if you don't hand it over in the next three seconds."

He laughed. "Tempting. But I think a repeat performance of yesterday morning would be a little more...rewarding."

"Oh for the love of God," she groaned, exasperated.

"I think you've been spending too much time with Edward," he said with a laugh.

Finally, after standing in the shower with her teeth chattering because she was so cold, Emmett draped the towel over the curtain rod. She snatched it quickly and wrapped it around herself before opening the curtain.

The next few seconds were a series of rapid transformations of Emmett's facial expression. Initially, as Rose stepped onto the bath mat, while his face showed the tiniest hint of surprise, his smug grin revealed a man that knew exactly what he was doing. Then, as he really looked at Rose, his tongue darted out to lick his lips, and his once aquamarine eyes almost seemed to turn sapphire, clouded with lust. They changed again as he raked his eyes up her body and came to rest on her neck and shoulders. As he examined the bruises at her neck, staring hard as if he could erase them just by looking, his eyes were a stormy and turbulent ocean of emotions, none of them warm or welcoming.

When Emmett finally managed to tear his gaze away from her neck to look her in the eyes, Rose saw anger, revenge and guilt. "Jesus, Rose. That can't feel good. Should I take you to the hospital?" he asked quietly. He took a step toward her, ignoring her unclothed state, and ran his hands through the air over her neck, as if there were some invisible force field keeping him from making contact.

Rose grabbed his hands in hers and brought them down to his side. "It's all superficial," she replied. "It looks worse than it is."

It was cold in the old house, and even with the towel, her teeth continued to chatter audibly and goose bumps rose across her skin. Emmett reacted quickly, drawing her in toward his chest, pinning her arms between them as a barrier.

"I'm so sorry, Rose. I shouldn't have left you alone in there." She could feel his head shake above her before he planted a kiss on her forehead, letting his mouth linger there for a moment.

Rose looked up into his eyes. "You couldn't have known. It's not your fault. And you saved me. When it counted, you were there. And that's all that matters." She lifted her arms from between them and placed a hand on either side of his face.

Rose had only to look into his expressive eyes to see all that he felt for her. To see that he loved her. That he would do anything for her. And no amount of waiting would change that. She could see it because the same feelings were reciprocated in her heart. They'd make it work, somehow. Because it was meant to be. She took that leap off the ledge, the last reason – like the line – crumbling away as if it had never existed, and fell.

Rose circled her arms around his neck, pulling herself up slightly. She gently placed a light kiss on his left cheek and then slowly moved to his right side, her nose brushing his as she passed, and kissed him again. She could feel the towel tighten against her back, as Emmett use it to bring her closer.

"Thank you, Emmett," she said, before brushing her lips against his.

He was breathing deeply now, his eyes fluttering open and closed. "For what?" he asked softly.

"For being there for me. For being you." Rose hadn't moved away from his face, and with each word, her lips skimmed across his.

Emmett gathered the towel around tighter, bringing their bodies flush against each other before lowering his mouth to hers. Their lips moved in a synchronized rhythm, dancing and rejoicing in their union.

It felt like second nature as Rose's hands traced across his body in light caresses. Her hands knew their way across his skin as if they had traveled the distance thousands of times before. Each muscle of his back. The width of his shoulders. The tapering at his waist to that glorious V. It was a heady sensation, the excitement of it being the first time, and the feeling that they had been together this way many times before.

She felt the towel skim down as it dropped to the floor at her feet. Emmett dragged his hands down her body slowly, teasing her as he reached the sensitive sides of her breasts. As he neared her hips, he paused.

"I'm going to take you to my bedroom now unless you stop me." To emphasize his point, he pressed his hips into hers, letting her know where they were headed if she decided to take that next step.

Rose's breath caught in her throat as she looked up at him. She let a smile slowly spread across her face before sucking her lower lip between her teeth. "If you're waiting on me to stop you, you're going to be waiting a _very_ long time. And personally, I think we can both find better uses of that time."

Emmett smiled widely, and Rose wasn't sure his dimples had ever been so beautiful. Before she had a chance to process anything, he swooped her up into his arms, wrapping her legs around his waist and claiming her mouth yet again.

They stumbled down the hallway together, running into walls and knocking picture frames off the wall. They were blissfully happy, wrapped around each other and laughing in between passionate kisses. Eventually, they made it to his room, leaving a wake of destruction in their path.

The need for tactile contact overwhelmed her as her hands danced across his body in a never ending effort to bring him closer. She let her tongue skate across the smooth, warm surface of his chest like she had wanted to do only hours before. With each nibble of his neck, they gasped together. With each flick of the tongue, their hearts skipped a beat. With each passionate grasp bringing their bodies closer, they moaned in unison.

Soon, Rose's fingers began teasing a path down the trail of hair that started just below his belly button only to disappear at the waistband of his pants. She was ready for him. More than she had ever been ready for anything. She wanted…_needed_…to feel his love for her from the inside. Nearly as much as she needed to show her love for him. She slowly worked the waistband down, revealing the very erect and almost painfully beautiful appendage that had been prodding her all morning.

Rose felt that whoever had decided penises were ugly clearly had never seen Emmett's. Even the finest art critic would have a difficult time finding a flaw in his well constructed shaft. Rose bit her lip, trying to stifle a giggle at her ridiculous train of thought.

Emmett, who had been watching Rose, noticed. "Are you…" he started. Rose looked up at him, her lip still caught between her teeth. Soon, her shoulders began to shake. "Wait a minute. Are you _laughing_?" Emmett rarely had cause to be embarrassed. And while he had been witness to a cornucopia of reactions to his manhood, laughter had never made it to that list.

Rose doubled over, laughing out loud now as she lay on his chest. "I'm – sorry," she gasped out between breaths. After a few moments of her trying frantically to quiet her laughter and Emmett looking crossly at the ceiling, she peeked her head up through a curtain of her damp golden hair. Emmett refused to look at her.

Rose crawled slowly up his body to look him in the eye. When she finally got high enough up, now straddling his chest, he stared past her. "I wasn't laughing at you, baby," she said earnestly. She brushed her lips gently against his, but they were still, completely unmoving. "It's just," she started with a sigh. "It's just…it's so…" She couldn't think of the right word to use.

With all the lust she could muster, which truthfully wasn't all that difficult while sitting on top of a naked Emmett , she crushed her lips to his. When he couldn't take it anymore and finally responded, she sat up. "That's what it does to me. It's…indescribable. I was laughing at myself. At my awe."

Emmett reluctantly looked at her now and grabbed her hips roughly before flipping them over so Rose was on the bottom and Emmett now hovered over her, resting between her thighs. "Awe?" he inquired with a quirked eyebrow.

Rose smiled at him playfully. "Awe."

He shook his head and exhaled loudly. "Don't. Ever. Laugh. At it. Again," he said between rough kisses to her breasts and ears. He took care to avoid the bruising on her neck and shoulders.

Rose lifted her legs up and rubbed her inner thighs along Emmett's body. As quickly as the laughter had come on, the lust and desire replaced it, and Rose was back in nearly the same frame of mind as she was before. Intense need to feel this amazing man inside of her.

"Emmett," she gasped as he sucked a pert nipple into his mouth. Her nails raked his back, leaving dark pink trails. "Emmett, please. Fuck me," she begged.

He released her nipple and kissed a gentle trail up her neck to her lips. "No. Not tonight. There will be _plenty_ of time for fucking in the future." Rose began to say something, but he blocked her lips with a single finger. "Believe me baby, we'll bring this house down. But not tonight. Tonight, I'll make _love _to you."

Rose nodded her head against his finger, and even in the dark, he could see the tear escape the corner of her eye, leaving a silver track down her cheek. Slowly, he removed his hand and let it trail tantalizingly slowly down her stomach until it found the wet warmth between her legs. Immediately, her hips bucked against him and Rose whimpered slightly.

"Relax beautiful. Tonight I'm going to make you mine." He kissed her languidly, tasting the sweetness of her mouth, as he added another finger to her warm folds.

Rose moved against him, needing more, but he continued on, tracing erratic figure eights around her clit and opening, bringing her ever closer to her climax. She gasped and begged for more – begged for him to just be inside of her – and finally, when she had just about given up, he removed his hand and slid his shaft deeply inside her. Rose's thighs clenched and she wrapped her legs around his waist, drawing herself closer to his body.

As well as she had known his body by instinct, the feeling of him inside of her was indescribable and more than she could have ever imagined or expected. Each thrust, gasp of pleasure, moan of a name, was overflowing with love and filled her not only physically, but emotionally as well. In the moments before she climaxed, pulsating around Emmett, she knew her life was complete with this man. Just as she knew that every trial and tragedy led her to him, to this moment, which was perfect with all its flaws.

Once he had brought her to the heights of pleasure and had also found his release, he collapsed on top of her, attempting to distribute his weight but mostly failing. Beneath him, Rose was taking shallow breaths, but she wouldn't have moved him for the world. Her fingers skimmed along his back as she enjoyed the peace of laying there next to him.

Eventually, he rolled off to the side, but he pulled her up against him, resting his head on her shoulder as she stroked his hair. "So, making love?" she asked quietly.

"Mmhmm," he replied as his hand traced patterns on her stomach. "And you better get used to it."

Rose smiled in the dark, both holding and being held by the man she knew she loved and would most probably spend a lifetime making love to. In the darkness, where so much had been revealed to her over the past few days, she came to the final conclusion that to jump off that ledge wasn't to fall, but to soar into love.

* * *

**End a/n:** Alright. That was a doozy of a chapter for me to write. I really need to thank a few people.

1. Sidekick and Crys – both had to endure weeks of me complaining about how hard writing the Emro scene was. They deserve red Skittles, cupcakes, unicorns (they'll have to find those on their own though) and whatever the hell else they want.

2. Again, Crys as well as SilentNC for being beta-tastic as always

3. Jodes and Nae for reminding me that I do occasionally come up with original ideas.

4. BabySis and Jodes again for being smut connoisseurs and giving me impossibly high standards to live up to.

5. AccioBourbon for inspiration. Her fic Inconceivable got me through the end here.

That's it. I know, it's a lot. But sometimes things need to be said. Epilogue is coming soon-ish. Then I'll be working on Catalyst pretty much full time cause it's waking me up in the middle of the night and that's just not cool.


	12. Epilogue

1**Penname:** bririzzle

**Story Title:** State of Delusion

**Complete Story Summary:** Rosalie, a nurse at Sunny Mountain Mental Hospital in Forks, WA ends a loveless engagement to Royce King. When someone is murdered at the hospital during a storm that keeps anyone from coming or going, she has to attempt to put her personal issues aside to make sure the patients are safe and that the murderer is found. Her issues include dealing with her crazy sister, Bella, who has multiple-personalities, figuring out her feelings for Emmett - the orderly who is also her best friend Alice's brother- and convincing Royce that he has no chance of getting her back.

**Chapter:** Epilogue – Wish

**Chapter Summary: **The day Bella gets released from Sunny Mountain is full of surprises.

**a/n: **A trillion years later, here it is. A shout out to my homegirlz Crys, SilentNC and Sidekick for which I owe St. Arbucks and some CBTL. Also to my loves at t20s for all of your support, love, reviews, and skittles.

**Epilogue – Ring Pops: **

Three months had passed since that nightmarish evening spent at Sunny Mountain. In the time since, Rose's life held no resemblance to what it was before. It was staggering to look back on.

When Alice went to stay with Jasper the morning after Angela was arrested, she was gone three days before returning to pack her things to move in with him. The ridiculous stare downs between the two lovebirds would have made Rose sick if she hadn't been so in love with Emmett. As it was, she understood completely. Rose, however, saved such looks of devotion for where they belonged: storage closets and the bedroom. Outside of those places, she and Emmett fought like cat and dog, but made up just as passionately, if not more so…and frequently.

Shortly after coming to terms with the fact that Rose was never going to return to him, Royce got dealt a heavy blow from Lady Justice. The IRS, probably the only government agency in the greater Washington area he wasn't paying off, finally caught up to him and indicted him for tax fraud. All of his possessions, including the several car dealerships throughout the peninsula, had been sold off to the highest bidder. To cap things off, Rose had also heard through the Forks rumor mill that he got a nasty dose of Chlamydia.

Angela had her own dealings in court just weeks after being arrested. She sealed her fate when she tried to bite the bailiff and turn him into a vampire and again when she admitted to the jury her plans for creating a vampire army. Angela would be spending the remainder of her psychotic life in a state mental hospital. Thankfully, one that was far, far away from Forks.

Rose had been working diligently to push all that behind her. That wasn't to say her nightmares weren't still haunted by James. She even had the occasional nightmare about Angela, but they tended to err on the ridiculous side. In her dreams, Angela chased her with a variety of kitchen utensils: whisks, turkey basters, plastic spatulas, and once with a pineapple.

That was the past though, and today was about the future – a future that was looking increasingly bright.

Rose sat impatiently behind the counter, tapping her nails on the desk as she tried not to glance down the hallway to Jasper's office. He had been in there with Bella for quite awhile – much longer than Rose had anticipated – and her heart was fluttering in her chest with nervous excitement.

Edward had made good on his promise, only returning to haunt Bella in the form of her too vivid dreams and memories. Her eyes were like an exercise in negative space, the void holding a heavy presence. Certainly, to those that didn't know Bella, they saw kindness and a demure nature, but Rose could only see what was missing. Rose was proud of Bella, though, and knew that in time she would move on. As such, Jasper had decided that if today's final session went well, Bella would be able to venture back out into the real world to become a functioning member of society.

Alice sat behind Rose, perched on the filing cabinet swinging her legs. Her feet banged out a disjointed rhythm against the metal.

"What the hell is taking them so long?" Rose grumbled to herself.

"You know Jazz. He's just being extra cautious," Alice said, but continued staring down the hall as if she could will the door to open.

"Will you knock it off?" Rose snapped as she turned and glaring pointedly at Alice's feet.

Alice looked back with an arched brow. "You know, you've been especially moody lately."

"I don't know what you're talking about." Rose spun back around in her chair again. She bent down to dig through the desk drawer, but her eyes stayed focused on the empty hall.

"No, really. I love you and all, but for the past week you've been impossible. Decorating my bedroom with you for Bella was a headache and a half. And coming from me, that's saying something. Do you remember how many shades of blue we used on the walls? Three. And how many times I had to return curtains to Bed Bath and Beyond? Five times, Rosalie. Five. Freakin'. Times. And we ended up with the same lacey, yellow curtains that were in my room to begin with."

"Someone's campaigning for drama queen…" Rose rolled her eyes. "It wasn't _that _bad. Can you blame me for wanting Bella to be comfortable? It's not like I have our house to go back to, and I wanted it to be as much like her old room as possible." Rose leaned back up after finding what she was looking for and unwrapped a purple ring pop, sliding it onto her finger.

"What is _that_?" Alice looked at Rose with surprise. "Is that a ring pop? You don't even like sugar. Or grape. It's like I don't even know you anymore." She shook her head, smiling. "You know, maybe once Jasper's through with Bella, you two ought to talk. Maybe he can prescribe you something for raging PMS. Because it's either that or you have another person inside of … you…" her voice trailed off as her eyes grew to the size of softballs. "Oh. My. God."

Rose pulled the grape jewel out of her mouth and it made a popping noise as it passed her lips. "What?"

Silence.

"Are you trying to insinuate that multiple personality disorder runs in my family?" Rose demanded. "Because I don't find that funny."

Alice shook her head, her mocking smile slowly dissipating to one of pure elation. "When's the last time you had your period?" Alice's feet were not only beating furiously against the filing cabinet, but she was now bouncing on top of it as well.

"I don't know. Not that long ago. Why?" Rose reached over and pinned Alice's legs to the filing cabinet. "And would you seriously stop that? You're going to give me a headache," Rose said.

"Just answer me."

Rose sighed, but began counting back; trying to remember what she was doing the last time Aunt Flo had come to visit. Slowly, she began to realize how long ago _not that long ago_ was.

Alice watched Rose's facial expressions morph from annoyed, to contemplative, to denial, to surprise before she couldn't hold it in anymore. She launched herself off the filing cabinet onto the floor by Rose's feet and placed her hand on Rose's stomach.

Rose sat there in stunned silence, the ring pop long forgotten.

Little by little, the surprise grew inside of her and she began to feel like she was filled with helium. Her concern dissipated and floated away into the ether as she slowly looked into Alice's knowing eyes.

"Right after the Angela was arrested. That was the last time," Rose said in a whisper. "But that's silly. We're always so cautious." Rose shook her head in disbelief. But she remembered back to their first night together. They had been so caught up in each other; protection hadn't even crossed their minds.

As Rose and Alice sat there, both gripping Rose's soon to be burgeoning stomach, Emmett rounded the corner. He quirked an eyebrow at his sister and his girlfriend.

"I told you not to eat that breakfast burrito this morning," he said.

Rose was still too stunned to respond.

Alice jumped up, her face alight with the knowledge of her impending aunt-hood. "Did you get Jake all settled?" she asked Emmett.

"Yeah. He's in the locker room. I almost feel bad giving the little guy up," he said forlornly. Jake had been staying with Emmett and Rose until they could find a new home. Finally, last week, Alice had found someone she felt was worthy.

"Little?" Rose asked, incredulously.

Emmett shrugged.

"Don't worry, big bro. This guy will make the perfect owner for Jake. I just know it," she said with a wink and a pat on his arm. "I'm going to go help Billy make that headband he's been asking for."

Emmett watched her walk away with a curious expression before turning back to Rose. Just as he turned his back on the hallway, Alice peeked her head back around the corner, gesturing for Rose to tell him about the probable pregnancy.

Rose sat in the chair, looking up at her very handsome boyfriend, and her heart clenched in trepidation. What if he wasn't ready for this? They had only been together for three months. The "M" word hadn't escaped either of their lips, but Rose certainly didn't want to spend her life with anyone else. She didn't think he had plans to either, but found herself uncertain.

What if he didn't want her to keep it?

With that stray thought, her insides felt as if they had turned inside out, and she knew that it didn't matter what Emmett felt; that the possible life inside of her was too precious to… she couldn't even consider it, much less follow through.

"Rose? Babe?" Emmett asked again. He leaned down in front of her, a look of concern on his face. "If this is about Bella, I'm sure it's going great in there. Jasper told me it was mostly just a formality."

Rose shook her head, but remained speechless. If this were one of the cartoons that Emmett liked to watch on Saturday mornings while he ate Count Chocula, there would be cogs spinning at record pace in her head and smoke drifting out of her ears.

"Is it about Jake?" he asked, growing more concerned by the second. "I _knew_ you'd get attached to him. I'm sure whoever Alice picked is a good guy. You know she wouldn't just give Jake away to anyone. Hell. I bet I can even convince him to let us keep him if you feel that strongly about it."

Rose's eyebrows furrowed and she finally looked Emmett in his eyes. "It's not about Jake. And we are _not_ keeping that mongrel. I'm more than ready to get rid of the smell. His fur is all over the sofa and you keep letting him up there, even after I told both of you not to. Last week, I found him lying on top of my dry cleaning. How he removed the plastic is still a mystery to me. Not to mention he's always digging holes in the yard. If I wanted an Underground Railroad in my backyard, I'd move east."

Emmett tried to withhold a smile. "He's a dog, Rose. He's pretty much just got the one expression."

"Bull. That dog _knows _I don't want him on the sofa. It's like he understands everything we're saying. He may be a pain in the ass, but that dog is smart. It's unnatural. This morning when I spilled coffee down my shirt, he laughed at me, Emmett. Laughed."

Emmett smiled, but didn't say anything. He actually agreed with her. Jake generally stayed on the floor in the living room when it was just the two of them, but whenever he heard Rose coming down the hall, he jumped right up on the sofa. And in her spot no less.

"Then what is it about?" He rubbed his hands up and down her thighs, trying to coax it out of her.

Rose grew serious again, staring deeply into Emmett's eyes, searching for her answer.

"I may...or may not..." She hesitated over the words as she took Emmett's hands in hers.

Emmett looked curiously down at her hand. "What is that?" he asked, already distracted.

"It's a ring pop. I'm-"

"You don't like sugar though." Emmett interrupted her a second time.

"The ring pop isn't important, Emmett." She removed her hands from Emmett's and placed them on either side of his face, trying to hold his attention. Rose's hands were pressing his cheeks in slightly, causing his lips to be pursed into a small _o_ shape.

"What I'm trying to tell you is I may or may not be-"

"Or grape. You don't like grape either," he said, his pursed lips distorting his speech.

Rose dropped her hands, rolling her eyes, and threw her head back against the chair. "Oh for the love of God! You're like a two year old. How the hell am I supposed to raise one kid, let alone two? It's like you have ADD or something. Maybe Jasper can give you a prescription for riddlin. And God help me if mini-Emmett in here has ADD too. " Her finger jabbed in the air, pointing at her stomach.

Emmett froze. His eyes glazed over and his mouth hung slightly ajar. Rose lifted her head off the back of the chair to see a stunned Emmett kneeling in front of her.

"Emmett?" she asked softly. "Honey?" She moved her hand to the underside of his chin and gently closed his mouth. "I won't have you teaching our child to be a mouth breather either," she said with a hint of a smile.

As he sat there, motionless, a small drop of moisture trickled out from the corner of his eye and began tracing a trail down his cheek, dropping onto the back of Rose's hand. He sighed loudly, and as he released his breath, the smile grew on his face, making him look like a little boy who had just received the toy fire truck he'd been asking for all year for his birthday.

He was silent as he began kissing every inch of Rose's face and exposed skin.

A laugh bubbled up from the center of Rose's heart as she wrapped her arms around Emmett's neck. He lifted her off the chair briefly and squeezed her tightly before setting her back on the tile flooring delicately.

"Sorry!" he exclaimed. "I shouldn't have squeezed you so tightly." He knelt down again, his head level with Rose's stomach. He braced his hands on either side and looked up at Rose, beaming with pride and love.

"You're having a baby?" he asked.

Rose smiled down at him, her hands resting on his shoulders. Briefly, his smile faltered. "And..." he started, but paused, a look of concern shrouding his proud glow. "You're sure...it's...is it...mine?" he asked, his voice quiet and his eyes full of shame for even questioning it.

Rose moved her hand from his shoulder to cup his cheek and draw his eyes to hers. "Royce and I hadn't been intimate for a while. So, yes Emmett. It's yours…That's if there even _is _an it. I haven't actually taken the test yet, but I'm also about three weeks late." The glow had slowly returned to his face, all his worries dissipating with her affirmation.

"We're having a baby," he said, almost reverently. "_We're_ having a _baby_."

"Congratulations," Carlisle stood behind the counter, holding a Care Bears coloring book in his hand. He smiled warmly at the couple and moved around the counter. He glanced at Rose briefly as he slowly moved his hands to her stomach, looking to gain her permission. Rose nodded her head slightly.

Carlisle's smile was large and fatherly as he looked at both Emmett and Rose. He took a step back after a moment, and began writing in his coloring book. The crayon was a vibrant shade of violet today, quite similar to Rose's eyes.

"You'll need to take good care of yourself, Rose. I'm prescribing prenatal vitamins for you to take. These early months are some of the most important." He continued writing, but paused to look down at Emmett sternly. "I presume you'll do right by her, won't you?" he asked, but the authority in his voice told Emmett that it wasn't actually optional.

"Of course, sir," Emmett responded sincerely.

Carlisle nodded his head curtly and continued writing. Once he was finished, he folded the paper in half and handed it over to Rose.

"I'm going to go tell Esme. She's going to be elated. Congratulations. Both of you." And he walked back down the hall.

Rose looked back at Emmett as she realized he hadn't actually told her how he felt. She had a pretty good idea, if his facial expression was any indication, but she still wanted to hear it out loud.

"So you're okay with this, right?" she looked at him questioningly.

Emmett looked deeply into her eyes, only to let out a loud burst of laughter.

"Emmett Brandon McCarty. I don't know what you find so funny about this," she chastised.

Emmett continued laughing jaggedly, trying and failing to stop. "I'm…I'm…" he stuttered in between spurts of laughter.

Rose crossed her arms over her chest, glaring up at the father of her soon-to-be and hopefully-not-ADD child.

Once he had calmed down sufficiently, he placed his hands on either side of her face, pulling her in for a heartfelt kiss. Rose tried not to reciprocate, but she was a glutton for his kisses, and soon melted into his arms. Her hands ran up and down his back softly.

He pulled away after a moment, happiness dancing in his sapphire eyes.

"Rose. I've only ever wanted to spend my life with you. And if we get to add a mini-Emro to our family, then that's just the cherry on the sundae for me. In fact, I say the more the better. We'll have a bunch of gorgeous little girls that look just like you; girls so beautiful that I have to sleep on the porch at night with a shotgun just to keep the boys away."

"Mini-Emro's?" Rose asked, a smile playing across her lips.

Emmett nodded his head. "I figure we'll be like Brangelina, only hotter. And instead of adopting all our babies, they'll be ours. I'm not talking octomom proportions here, maybe something a little more manageable, because you're right – with our luck, they'll all have my attention span and we'll be chasing them all over the house, trying to get them to settle down."

She fingered a lock of hair at the back of his neck. "And if I want a little boy? One with your dimples and eyes and curly hair?"

"We can have a few of those, too." Emmett shrugged. "Actually, that works out; we'll all take shifts sleeping on the porch watching out for the girls." He smirked. "The point is, baby, I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I want to see your belly grow to the size of a prize watermelon at a county fair. I want to be the one to make the late night runs for Ben n' Jerry's. I want to watch little Emro go off to his or her first day of school. I want to be there to intimidate the _shit_ out of prom dates. I want to watch them grow up and be their own person, probably ignoring everything we taught them. I want to be there when you're a crotchety old woman, beating me with your cane for not paying attention to you." He said with a laugh.

"I'm not capable of being crotchety," Rose replied indignantly.

"I also want to be there to call you on your bullshit," he said with a smirk. "Basically, you're not getting rid of me. I'm stuck to you like gorilla glue."

Rose smiled and wrapped her arms around his neck. "You aren't getting rid of me either," she said and placed a kiss on his lips. Before she pulled away, she said, "But we are _not_ naming _any _of our children Emro."

Emmett laughed and nuzzled her neck. "No? Hmmm…" he mused, "what about Emmettalie. That's got a nice ring to it."

"You're officially banned from naming the baby." Rose laughed.

A throat cleared from behind the counter, and Rose pulled away from Emmett.

"Can I help you?" she asked the stranger.

"Hello. I'm here about Jacob," he said.

Rose's head tilted slightly as she stared at him. She was positive that she had never seen him before, but his tone and demeanor gave her an intense feeling of familiarity.

The next few minutes passed in a blur. Rose knew Emmett must have stepped away at some point to get Jake, but she was captivated, trying to figure out how she knew him. Her mind was a whirlwind of scenarios, trying to place him in the right scene, but none of them seemed to fit. He was obscenely handsome and Rose felt that she would have recognized him if she had ever seen him in town. His erratic hair was a distinctive shade of reddish brown she had never seen before and while his honey eyes exuded reserved warmth, his pale skin reminded her of an Italian sculpture of a Roman god: cold, hard, and flawless.

She wasn't sure how long she had been standing there, staring unabashedly at the man, but snapped out of her inspection the moment she heard a door open down the hall, everything around her falling away into the background.

As Bella walked out the door, all eyes were moved to her – even the stranger's.

Bella walked slowly down the hall, the timid smile growing on her face as she approached the group now gathered at the nurse's station. She faltered mid-way, her eyes flickering between Rose and the man now holding onto Jake's leash, her smile faltering minutely. Just before she reached the desk, she tripped over her own feet, nearly tumbling to the cold linoleum. Before she could, however, the man moved to scoop her up into his arms.

Rose rushed around the desk, coming to Bella's side. "Are you alright?"

Bella blushed, glancing briefly at Rose before staring at her strange hero. "Fine." It came out as hardly more than a whisper.

Rose glanced back and forth between the pair, still grasping each other's arms. She coughed. "Um, Bella, this is…" Rose looked at him, realizing that even if he had said his name earlier, she wasn't paying attention. "I'm sorry, what did you say your name was?"

He answered at the same time as Bella, "Edward."

_**Happily Ever Fucking After Bitches.**_

**End Notes:**

Seriously folks, go out and buy yourself some red skittles. If you made it to the end, you have my undying gratitude for your patience and reviews and if you didn't review, that's okay too.

Catalyst you ask? Or maybe you didn't, but Imma' tell you anyways. I'm undecided about continuing at the moment. If you read it and are interested in reading more, let me know. I'll have to steal Ron's wand or something and magic myself up some spare time, but it's worth a shot I s'pose. And no, I won't be offended if you're off the whole Catalyst thing. I leave it to you my skittley friends.

All thanks go to Lola aka SideKick55. And much like I did in my opening chapter, I'm re-pimping her fic, because they deserve prime pimpage. Canon is complete for those of you who don't like waiting for updates. And it's dee-lightful. I want to marry Will, but I apparently must fight Ang amongst others for the title of wifey. And Grace Note is love. Because it's got Seth. And because it's just plain good. But I'm a sucker for Seth. ( my new slogan btw jsyk). Links are in my fave stories section so check it out. FYI – Grace Note is the companion to Canon, so read Canon first, kay? And you'd seriously be missing out if you didn't follow Canon up with Grace Note (or GN as I like to call it). Again, I say, it has SETH!

Much love.

Bririzzle

P.S. Credit to oxymoronassoc's "Growing Up Cullen" for Emmettalie.


End file.
